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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT: 



DRUNKENNESS 



WHAT IT IS 

ana 

HOW TO CURE IT 



By 

Edward Francis Stace, M. D. 
Chicago 



The Mentor Publishing Company (Not Inc.) 

Chicago, Illinois 

1913 



BC36T 

.5s 



Copyrighted 1913 by 

Edward Francis Stace, M. d. 

All Rights Reserved 



/ 



2~ e)~c 

©CI.A357853 



CONTENTS 



Page 
A PERSONAL MESSAGE TO THOSE INTER- 
ESTED IN THE PREVENTION AND CURE 
OF DRUNKENNESS 1 

Antiquity of Drunkenness — Why the usual temperance 
efforts fail — Drunkenness a curable disease — This book 
written for the drinker himself, his family, and his 
friends, as well as for medical men — The attitude of mind 
you should have for the study of Drunkenness — The 
path leading to freedom from drink. 

AN EXPLANATION OF SUCH TERMS AS 

MAY BE MISUNDERSTOOD 7 

Definition of Intoxication, Alcoholism, Dipsomania, De- 
lirium Tremens, Mania a potu, Inebriety, Drunkenness, 
and the Drink Habit — What is understood from the terms 
Alcohol, Liquor and Intoxicants — The percentage of 
Alcohol in different drinks — Comparison of the amount 
of alcohol in whiskey and beer — Physiological and 
Psychological defined. 

THE PATHOLOGY OF DRUNKENNESS...... n 

Definition of pathology — Only proven facts will be stated 
— The usual conception of Drunkenness — The progres- 
sive symptoms of intoxication — The awakening — Where 
the real trouble lies — The false belief that a drinker is all 
right when he sobers up — How you may know that alco- 
hol is a poison. 

Effects of Alcohol Upon the Circulatory System 15 

Necessity for pure blood and good circulation — Dilation 
and calcification of arteries — How alcohol produces 
"pipe stem" arteries or Arterio-Sclerosis — The drink- 
er's liability to apoplexy — A common cause of "heart 
failure" — How nourishment is diminished and body pois- 
ons increased — The weakened resistance to infections 
and other diseases — The red blood cells' oxygen carry- 
ing power weakened — The white blood cells poisoned and 
unable to destroy bacteria — Why infectious diseases are 



iv DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Page 
so fatal to drinkers — The mistaken idea that a drink of 
liquor warms the body — Why a drunken man so quickly 
freezes to death — The "shivering fits" of drunkards — 
How to test the truth of the statement that alcohol does 
not warm you. 

The Liver and Kidney as Affected by Alcohol 21 

Fatty degeneration of the liver — "Gin drinker's liver" de- 
scribed — Acute and chronic inflammation of the kidneys, 
or Bright's disease — How these inflammations cause the 
body poisons to be retained — Why the common idea that 
gin is good for the kidneys is not true. 

Alcoholic Disorders of the Stomach and Intestines. 24 
Functional disturbances common — The "Drunkard's dys- 
pepsia" — Chronic inflammation and catarrh — Dilation of 
the stomach — Why a drinker's sense of taste is blunted 
and his appetite capricious — How alcohol stops the pro- 
cess of digestion. 

Physical Effects of Alcohol Upon the Brain and 

Nerves * 26 

How the brain and nerve cells are injured and destroyed 
— The number of brain cells affected constantly increases 
— Alcohol does not stimulate but paralyzes — How alco- 
hol causes loss of control of the brain's regulating appa- 
ratus — A drunken man cannot generate brain power — 
Defective sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch caused 
by alcohol — Muscular power weakened — Why drinkers 
have no "ginger" or "staying power" — Many so-called 
rheumatic pains, cramps, and numbness caused by alco- 
hol — How nerve energy and strength is lost. 

THE FANCIES, VAGARIES AND BELIEFS OF 
DRINKERS 32 

Proof of alcoholic damage shown in his mental processes 
— No beginner believes drink will injure him — Each one 
thinks he is "different" — May believe his drinking con- 
cealed — Every drinker thinks he can stop when he chooses 
— The drinker's egotism — How he over-estimates his abil- 
ity and judgment — Often thinks he is being abused and 
persecuted — May think family and friends untrue to him 
— His memory is faulty — His judgment and efficiency be- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT v 

Page 

low par — Why he is unfitted for responsible positions — 

His mental "balance wheel" is paralyzed— Will Power 

and Initiative lacking — Cannot successfully plan and 

execute. 

The Results of the Higher Brain Centers Being 

Most Affected 41 

Physical and moral standards are debased — How the 
brute in man is permitted to get the upper hand — The 
better the man, the worse the effects — His true colors 
not shown when drunk — Why drink brings out the 
worst in every man — The difference between man and 
brute and how it is maintained — Why the drinker must 
go backwards. 

THREE CLASSES OF DRINKERS 46 

What is moderate drinking? — The drinker cannot judge 
moderation — Ability to drink without showing it is no 
evidence of a "strong" head — Why there can be no 
safety mark. 

The Constant Drinkers 48 

What is meant by constant drinking — The "craving" for 
intoxicants — In the alcoholic "pickle" — They seldom real- 
ize they have passed the danger line — The test of safety 
— Don't say you can stop until you have proved it. 

The Periodical Drinkers 51 

The true periodical drinker described — No "craving" be- 
tween sprees — The symptoms which precede a spree — 
The attacks may occur at regular or irregular intervals — 
The nature of the irresistible impulse to drink — Why the 
attacks terminate — An entire chaage of character dur- 
ing attacks — Dipsomaniacs among the periodicals — The 
danger to others from this type of drinker — The mistaken 
idea of the periodical's will power — Reproaches do more 
harm than good — Don't preach to a man in quicksand — 
A word to the periodical drinker. 

The Voluntary Drinkers 55 

No need or craving for drink present in these cases — 
They have the "vice of drinking" but not the "Disease of 
Drunkenness" — Distinction must be made between the 
two classes — Voluntary drinkers soon become constant 
drinkers — An admonition to the voluntary drinker. 



vi DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Page 
CAUSES OF DRINKING 57 

The causes or reasons usually given — The one great 
cause which is rarely recognized — Reasons often only 
excuses — Importance of knowing cause before beginning 
treatment. 

Heredity 58 

What is meant by an "inherited craving" — The results of 
alcoholism as seen in the children of drinkers — The cura- 
bility of so-called inherited drunkenness. 

Surroundings and Associates 59 

The effects of environment — Poverty a result and a cause 
of Drunkenness — The influence of associates. 

Disease 60 

Drunkenness caused by using alcohol as a medicine — 
Heart disease as a cause and a result of Drunkenness — 
How alcohol is usually prescribed — Patients claim their 
doctors ordered them to drink — The result — Various ail- 
ments for which alcohol is taken — Alcohol is not a "cura- 
tive" drug or medicine — The danger of prescribing any 
form of alcohol — A suggestion to the alcohol prescribing 
physician. 

Nervous and Physical Exhaustion 63 

The strenuous life a common cause of Drunkenness — 
Alcohol taken for its supposed stimulating and strength- 
ening power — The depressing after effects create a de- 
mand for a constantly increasing supply — The haste 
for success and its disastrous results — His intentions 
were good but the means he used put him down and out. 

Worry and Trouble 65 

Business worries a cause of Drunkenness — Family 
troubles may make men drink — Inability to withstand 
severe mental shock. 

Injuries 65 

Hard drinking often dates from a severe injury — The 
cause of this unknown. 

Social Customs 66 

The custom of treating a common cause of Drunkenness 
—Stopping the practice of treating would lessen the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT vii 

Page 
amount of drinking — The habit of drinking may be 
formed at dinners and banquets — Do not force a guest to 
drink. 

Suggestion the Great Cause of Drinking 67 

The cause of taking the first drink — The auto-suggestion 
of curiosity — Suggestion the one true cause of drinking 
— Suggestion a cause and a cure of Drunkenness — All 
drinkers reason along the same lines. 

EFFECTS OF DRUNKENNESS ON SOCIETY 
AND THE NATION 70 

Alcohol in history — The discovery that alcohol destroys 
men — The governments of Europe in a determined ef- 
fort to stop Drunkenness — The nature of alcohol — Alco- 
hol a poison — Alcohol has no food value — Loss of effi- 
ciency enormous — Alcohol a narcotic, not a stimulant — 
Alcohol not an aid in consumption — Alcohol the cause of 
disease — One drink makes the white blood corpuscle 
drunk — The great destroyer — Alcohol ten thousand times 
more destructive than war — Alcohol's wounded today are 
more than six hundred million white men — The curse of 
all races — The overshadowing cause of crime, pauperism 
and insanity — Defies Nature and Nature's God — Blights 
the pro.geny of man — Alcohol increases the perils of 
childbirth and the danger of race suicide — The stand- 
point of the state — The disease is organic — The treatment 
must be organic — The power of truth — Pass the cure 
along. 

THE LAW OF SUGGESTION 83 

The principles of Suggestion easily understood — Each 
feature and fact to be studied by itself — The difference 
between brain and mind. 

The Two Minds 84 

The theory of dual mentality — The conscious mind and 
what it controls — The sub-conscious mind and its powers 
— How the two phases of mind work together — Their 
mode of operation — The sub-conscious mind highly amen- 
able to Suggestion — The effects of memories upon our 
present actions. 



viii DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Page 

What Suggestion Is 88 

Definition of Suggestion — How Suggestion influences 
all actions — How a man's character is formed by his 
thoughts — How Suggestion has been misunderstood — 
Cults and religions founded on Suggestion — Suggestion 
used to cure diseases — Suggestion a wonderful power 
for good. 

Safeguards on Suggestion 91 

How our surroundings influence our actions — How rea- 
son and judgment may determine our actions — How we 
may control our thoughts and refuse to accept destructive 
suggestions — How a weak Suggestion gains in strength 
by being often repeated — How all our habits are formed. 

Auto- Suggestion 94 

Definition of Auto-Suggestion — The greatest force for 
overcoming a destructive mental or physical habit — How 
a strong will is built — The cause of weak will power. 

SUGGESTION AND DRUNKENNESS 96 

The effects of the first spree upon a beginner's future 
drinking — Why pleasant memories insure another spree 
and vice versa — How man's emotions govern him, rather 
than his reason and judgment — Why some beginners go 
quickly to the extreme — How Suggestions to drink may 
be given to the mind — How such Suggestions are corn- 
batted — Why promises not to drink are usually broken 
— Why the "craving for drink" is so hard to resist — 
How the drink habit becomes fixed and permanent. 

THE CHANCES FOR A CURE AMONG DIF- 
FERENT CLASSES OF DRINKERS 102 

The great majority of cases are curable — Treatment 
should be individualized. 

The Curability of the Voluntary Drinker 102 

His drinking a vice, not a disease — The egotism of this 
class — Some experiences which may cause them to stop . 
drinking — The influence of religion as a cure — Medicines 
of little or no value in these cases — Suggestion the real 
treatment. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT ix 

Page 
Constant and Periodical Drinkers 104 

The constant drinker usually easier to cure — Between 
sprees with periodicals it does little good to use drugs — 
The periodical attacks may be aborted. 

The Frenzied Drinker 105 

Outlook for perfect cure not so good — Nervous organ- 
ization unstable and made worse by drink — Must also 
be taught self-control to overcome his violent outbursts 
of temper. 

Epileptics, Mental Defectives and Degenerates 106 

Institutional treatment required — A cure hardly to be 
expected. 

Confirmed Alcoholics Without Family Ties 106 

The "down and outs" of large cities — How this class 
is usually cared for — Why usual methods of treatment 
are almost certain to fail — Special institutional treatment 
a necessity — The after treatment of this class — What is 
the chance for their recovery. 

The Drinker Who Wants to be Cured 110 

Easy to get results for him — A willingness to follow 
directions makes a cure practically certain. 
The Drinker Who Will Not Consent to Take Treat- 
ment 110 

An intense desire to be cured may be induced — The use 
of Suggestion in these cases — Reaching the Sub-con- 
scious mind during sleep — An entirely new idea in the 
treatment of this class of drinkers — The psychological 
facts upon which the treatment is based — Demonstrate 
its truth by actual trial. 

TREATMENT OF ACUTE ALCOHOLIC CON- 
DITIONS 114 

A physician seldom called for ordinary intoxication — 
Patient usually wants only temporary relief — The 
seriousness of his condition seldom explained — Deaths 
from alcoholism a common result of this neglect — Treat- 
ment for relief of acute conditions should be followed 
by treatment for the Inebriety. 

How to Sober a Drunken Person 116 

Getting rid of the alcohol — Measures to settle a dis- 



x DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Page 

ordered stomach — How to secure thorough intestinal 
elimination — Baths, sleep and diet — Medicines which may 
also be used — How to relieve dyspepsia following 
intoxication. 

Acute Alcoholism 120 

Definition — Symptoms upon which diagnosis is made — 
Precautions which must be taken with persons found 
unconscious — Odor of liquor on breath of an unconscious 
man does not prove him drunk — Do not make snap 
judgments in these cases — The prognosis or chances for 
recovery — The treatment given in full — Cautions as to 
the employment of medicines. 

Mania a Potu 125 

The frenzied drinkers or "fighting drunks" — How they 
may be quieted and controlled — Harsh measures some- 
times necessary — The treatment. 

Delirium Tremens 126 

Definition — The symptoms — The prognosis — The treat- 
ment given in full — Measures to abort an attack — Physi- 
cian should be called at once — Suggestions and cautions 
regarding the medicines employed. 

TREATMENT OF CHRONIC ALCOHOLISM, 

INEBRIETY OR DRUNKENNESS. 133 

Must first understand what the disease is — No magic 
cure or marvelous drugs — Drunkenness a physical and 
mental disease — Both phases must be treated to get best 
results. 

Treatment By Moral Suasion 135 

What moral suasion is — How it is employed — The scope 
of its effectiveness — How all its cures are effected — The 
difference between moral suasion and suggestion. 

Treatment By Confinement 137 

Drunkenness punished by confinement — No attempt made 
to cure — Confinement and treatment a necessity for the 
alcoholic without family and friends — A description of 
an institution for this class of drinkers. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT xi 

Page 
Treatment By Diet 142 

The full diet — Alcoholized food and drink— The fruit 
cures— How faith and auto-suggestions aid. 

Treatment By Baths 145 

The therapeutic value of baths — The Turkish bath— The 
hot air cabinet— The electric light cabinet— Electricity 
and vibration. 

Treatment By Suggestion 148 

The great value of Suggestion in treating Drunkenness 
not generally known — Exact instructions for using Sug- 
gestion seldom given — How hundreds have been cured 
of drunkenness — The power of Suggestion graphically 
shown — Cures may be accomplished without medicines — 
Why medicines and Suggestion should be used in com- 
bination. 

Treatment By Drugs 153 

The first institution for the treatment of Drunkenness 
as a disease — What is sought to be accomplished through 
medicines — You cannot successfully prescribe for your- 
self — Treatment for clearing the body of alcohol — 
Various treatments for the removal of the craving — The 
usual drugs and formulas used in the treatment — 
Homeopathic medicines and methods of treatment — 
Danger of using hypnotics and narcotics in treatment- 
No combination of drugs a specific for all cases. 

AN OUTLINE OF A GENERAL METHOD OF 
HOME TREATMENT FOR THE PATIENT 
WHO WISHES TO STOP DRINKING. 169 

General Eliminative Measures — Baths and diet — Medi- 
cation for eradicating the craving for alcohol — The 
medicines to be used. 

The Mental Treatment 173 

The thoughts which make men drink — Overcoming a 
bad habit of mind — How to make Auto-suggestions 
most effective — The exact way in which Auto-suggestion 
should be used — Rules for formulating specific sugges- 
tions — The Auto-suggestions to be employed — How to 
control your thoughts — What to say to drinking friends — 



xii DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Page 

Make mental picture of your new self — The power of 
faith. 

General Instructions 182 

How to recognize and remove the cause of drinking — 
Most "reasons" are simply excuses — A little persever- 
ance sure to win — Getting rid of the "old self" — All 
benefits within your easy reach. 

A METHOD FOR HANDLING THE CASE OF 
A DRINKER WHO WILL NOT CONSENT 
TO TAKE TREATMENT 185 

How false pride keeps men from taking treatment — A 
desire to be cured can be induced — The medical meas- 
ures to secure the elimination of alcoholic poisons — 
How the craving is removed — The mental treatment 
— How the suggestions are made to reach the Sub- 
conscious mind — Examples of Suggestions to be given 
the patient — How to overcome difficulties in the treat- 
ment — How misapplied Suggestion often works disaster 
— How to make a drinker heed a request to stop drink- 
ing — How to create a new standard for a drinker and 
make him live up to it — Cured to stay cured. 

GENERAL REMARKS ON THE TREATMENT 
OF DRUNKENNESS 195 

What constitutes a "cure" of Drunkenness? — Is treat- 
ment for Drunkenness injurious? — How long does it 
take to effect a cure? — Has the age of the patient any 
bearing on the results of treatment? — Are all cures per- 
manent? — Must the patient go to a sanitarium? — How a 
person can be prevented from learning to drink. 

HOW TO OBTAIN PRACTICAL BENEFITS 
FROM WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED 207 

All information intended for actual use — How to put in 
practice what you have learned — The way a drinker may 
get practical results — Real, "right now" benefits for the 
wife, mother or friends of a drinker — Does no good to 
sit and "wish" unless you do your part to make your 
wish come true. 



A Personal Message to Those 

Interested in the Prevention 

and Cure of Drunkenness 

From the day that Noah rebuked his sons and 
drove them from him, for jeering at him as he lay 
drunk, down to the present time, Drunkenness has 
been the greatest cause of physical degeneration, mis- 
ery, poverty and wrong with which the world has had 
to contend. The devastation and havoc wrought by 
Alcohol are everywhere so apparent that you have but 
to look around you to see the thousands of brilliant 
intellects shattered, families wrecked, homes destroyed, 
crimes committed and prisons filled — all through its 
insidious and baneful influence. 

From time immemorial there have been crusades 
against drink; countless thousands have preached the 
gospel of temperance ; pleadings, pledges and promises 
without number have been made by and on behalf of 
the drinker, but all with but little permanent result. 
Why the lack of success? Why have long continued 
efforts failed to produce greater results? Simply be- 
cause until comparatively recent years people in gen- 
eral, and the great majority of medical men, have per- 
sisted in regarding Drunkenness as a vice, crime or 
moral weakness. 

Nearly all temperance efforts and legal means for 
the cure and prevention of Drunkenness are based 
upon the theory that it is a moral disorder which the 
victim can control at will, or a wicked habit which he 
can continue or stop at pleasure. This is very much 
in line with the former idea that insanity was a "pos- 



2 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

session by the devil." The insane were supposed to 
have voluntarily entered into a compact with the evil 
spirits. The remedy was torture and severe punish- 
ment "to drive out the devils." Needless to say that 
law, religion, and public sentiment all failed in the 
cure and prevention of insanity by these means. The 
disease went unchecked and the victims unrelieved be- 
cause the real cause of the trouble was unknown. 

Drunkenness is a disease. It has its distinct symp- 
toms, its own peculiar phases, moreover, it is curable. 
The object of this book is not alone to state these 
facts, but, what is more important to all, I wish to 
plainly set forth a method, by which it can be cured to 
stay cured. 

I have written primarily for those who are, or 
who should be, the most interested in the cure of 
Drunkenness — the patient himself, the members of his 
family and his real friends. Therefore the various 
questions involved will not be discussed from a purely 
medical standpoint, as those without scientific training 
would be unable to understand them thoroughly. On 
the contrary, I will endeavor to use the simplest 
phrasing possible and, at all times, to make the facts 
plain and unmistakable. 

Neither will I moralize to any great extent upon 
the ills and evils which so surely follow intemperance. 
If you are one who has in anyway to contend with 
drink you already know from your own experience 
wherein and whereby you suffer most. Undoubtedly 
you are chiefly interested in the right methods to fol- 
low in order to bring about a cure in some certain case 
of Drunkenness and to gain freedom and relief from 
its effects — and that is what I purpose showing you. 

If you sincerely wish to help yourself, or are 
actuated by an earnest desire to help someone help 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 3 

himself, you will here learn how you may do so. What 
you want is results; to get them you must have work- 
able, usable knowledge, not theories, not beliefs but 
facts — facts that have been proven beyond doubt or 
question. Therefore study every sentence, every para- 
graph of this book carefully, do not skip and skim 
through it ; do not get merely a superficial understand- 
ing but let every idea sink deep and stick there. 

You will gain herein many new ideas on the cause 
and cure of the Drink Habit, ideas that at first glance 
may seem strange, perhaps even unbelievable, but 
withhold all doubt and criticism until the end. Prove 
by you own observation what is said of the disease, 
try for yourself the method of cure and you will find 
that your own hard common sense will agree with 
every argument made and idea set forth. If it does 
not, then, but not till then, should you doubt or dis- 
believe. 

Assuming that you have taken up the study of 
this question with the idea of curing yourself, some 
member of your family, or a friend, of drinking, I 
trust that you have begun with a deep-rooted earnest- 
ness and a steadfast purpose that will brook no diffi- 
culty and know no stopping until you have finished 
that which you have set out to do. To be quickly and 
completely successful you must use the knowledge you 
gain from this book. Use it not next week, next month 
or next year, but today. The present is the only time 
that is really yours, the past belongs to history and the 
future is of no use to you until it becomes the ever 
present now. 

Curing Drunkenness requires both thought and 
action. Thought to acquire knowledge and action to 
use it. No man can reason without thinking and it 
being plain that thought is the inspiration and source 



4 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

of all conscious action, you can readily understand the 
great importance of beginning this work and continu- 
ing it with the right mental attitude or in other words 
to have the right spirit or frame of mind in all that you 
do. 

The mind is such a powerful factor in shaping 
all actions, that every thought you have regarding the 
method of treatment will advance or retard the cure in 
the same ratio as thought is "positive and construc- 
tive" or "negative and destructive.'' Bear in mind al- 
ways that your success or failure is predetermined by 
your own thoughts. If you take up this work in a 
half-hearted, doubtful, listless spirit it will be a barri- 
cade to your success, because enthusiasm, faith, energy 
and perseverance will become choked and strangle for 
want of nutrition. 

An antagonistic, fault-finding, critical manner, 
which is the offspring of ignorance and self-conceit is 
also a sure preventive of successful results. When 
my old father-in-law would encounter a self-opinion- 
ated popinjay who fondly imagined that his little brain 
had already encompassed the sum total of human 
knowledge and who was therefore inclined to pooh- 
pooh every idea set forth by another he was wont to 
say "I have always held and I still maintain that the 
worst element in society is a damn fool." And you 
will agree that the man who labors under the delusion 
that he has learned all that there is to know and who 
therefore sets himself up as critic extraordinary to the 
rest of the world in general, is surely entitled to a 
place at the head of this class, as his very thoughts 
create about him a Chinese wall through which com- 
mon sense cannot penetrate. 

So, then, do not place obstacles and difficulties in 
your own path, by reason of wrong thinking which 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 5 

results in wrong acting. On the contrary, bring to this 
work the right mental attitude, which is one of perfect 
faith, unbounded enthusiasm, untiring perseverance, 
and a love of the labor involved. Be not over anxious 
for an instantaneous transformation but rather realize 
that results to be perfect and permanent require a rea- 
sonable effort on your part and also a reasonable time. 
Let your heart be in this work, seek truth and wisdom, 
not as one who knows it all, but as one who wants to 
learn. Your personal welfare, or the welfare of those 
who may be dependent upon you, demands that you 
make the most of this opportunity. 

Though the individual skill which one may have 
acquired through years of experience in treating 
Drunkenness cannot be transmitted by the printed 
page, nor can we set down in a limited space the exact 
manner of handling the variations in individual cases, 
yet outside of this, I have endeavored to blaze a path 
leading to freedom from drink which you can easily 
follow and if you will whole-heartedly put into actual 
practice the methods of cure which will be given you 
herein, I feel confident that you will obtain rapid and 
permanent relief from the troubles caused by drink. 

Sincerely, 
Edward Francis Stace, M. D. 



An Explanation of Such Terms as 
May Be Misunderstood 

In order to avoid any confusion of ideas as to the 
meaning or application of a number of words and 
terms which will be met with quite frequently through- 
out this book, I believe it is advisable to define such 
of these as may be mis-understood or mis-applied. 
Only such words as will tend to becloud the reader's 
knowledge of the subject will be considered. 

Intoxication, Alcoholism, Dipsomania, Delirium 
Tremens, Mania a potu, Inebriety, The Disease of 
Drunkenness, and The Drink Habit, all have a com- 
mon or general association, but there is a decided 
difference in their specific meaning. 

Intoxication refers to the stage when the drinker 
is under the manifest influence of alcohol. The intoxi- 
cation may be partial, the drinker having more or less 
control of his faculties ; or it may be complete to stupe- 
faction. It is a transient rather than a permanent con- 
dition. 

Alcoholism means a state of poisoning by alcohol. 
Acute Alcoholism is an intense poisoning due to taking 
a large quantity of strong spirits in a short time. A 
person may die from acute alcoholism as a result of 
his first spree or it may occur in the case of a con- 
firmed drunkard who has been drinking for years. 
Chronic Alcoholism is often employed in describing the 
conditions resulting from the progressive poisoning 
which is the outcome of a long continued use of in- 
toxicants. 

Dipsomania while often applied to all stages of the 
7 



8 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

drink disease, properly describes a phase peculiar to a 
class of drinkers who at certain times seem obsessed 
by an overwhelming desire for alcohol. This craving 
is accompanied by marked mental excitement. McBride 
holds that such drinkers are really insane but the 
symptoms are not sufficiently marked between periods 
to attract attention and are only apparent when patient 
is excited by alcohol. 

Delirium Tremens is the name given to the violent 
delirium which often takes place during the terminal 
period of a hard spree. This condition is commonly 
known as the "jim-jams" or the "snakes" owing to the 
horrible illusions ami delusions which beset the drinker 
during the attack. 

Mania a Potu is the name used to describe the 
fierce frenzy or acute mania which attacks certain 
drinkers. They are often called "crazy drunks." The 
amount of liquor consumed may not be very excessive 
but it causes severe mental excitement of a destructive 
type. 

The Disease of Drunkeness, Inebriety and the 
Drink Habit all refer to that condition of body and 
mind produced by the regular use of intoxicants, either 
as a constant or periodical drinker. These terms imply 
a condition of permanency rather than one of short 
duration. So in speaking of the disease caused by the 
use of intoxicants I shall refer to it as Drunkenness, 
or as Inebriety. Let it then be understood that these 
terms, when used broadly, do not apply to any one 
spree or to any one or several effects of that spree, but 
to the disease considered as a whole in all its various 
forms, phases and stages. 

Let us now get a clear understanding of the terms 
Alcohol, Liquor, and Intoxicants, as we will use them. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 9 

When we speak of Alcohol we do not mean the 
raw spirit or alcohol of commerce. We mean the in- 
toxicating principle in any and all alcoholic drinks. 
The same is in a great measure true when speaking of 
Liquor, though this term is generally taken to mean 
the distilled and more highly alcoholized drinks, such 
as whiskey, brandy, rum or gin. Intoxicants include all 
kinds of drinks which contain alcohol in sufficient 
amount to intoxicate, when used as a beverage. 

Alcohol is the intoxicating principle in Whiskey, 
Brandy, Rum, Gin, Beer, Ale, Porter, Wines, Hard 
Cider, the Mexican's Pulque and Mescal, the Bino of 
the Philippino or the Vodka of the Russian. The dif- 
ference in intoxicating power is due to the varying per- 
centage or proportion of alcohol in the various kinds 
of drinks. Distilled liquors or ardent spirits, such as 
Whiskey, Brandy, Rum and Gin contain from 40 to 
50% of absolute alcohol; Beer from 5 to 10%; Ale 
and Porter from 5 to 7% and Wines from 7 to 20%. 

Right here I want to call attention to a very com- 
mon but thoroughly wrong idea in regard to the dif- 
ference in the intoxicating effect of whiskey and beer. 
Every drinker knows that the percentage of alcohol is 
not nearly so great in beer as it is in whiskey and 
therefore he often claims and believes that there is not 
enough alcohol in beer to do him any harm. But he 
overlooks the very important fact that the ordinary 
drink of whiskey is about one-half ounce, of which 
fifty percent or one-quarter ounce is alcohol ; the ordi- 
nary drink of beer is from eight to fourteen ounces, 
say ten ounces, with five percent alcohol. This would 
make one-half ounce of alcohol in such a drink of beer 
or twice as much as in the ordinary drink of whiskey. 
The difference in the size of a drink of whiskey and a 
drink of beer more than makes up for the difference in 



10 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

the percentage of alcohol. Keep this fact in mind 
when comparing the strength of various intoxicants. 

Physiological (fiz-i-o-loj-i-kal) and psychological 
(si-ko-loj-i-kal) are two words which will be used 
rather frequently. At first glance they look very much 
alike but their meanings are totally different. Physio- 
logical relates to the properties, phenomena, and func- 
tions of the body, while psychological refers to the 
faculties, and phenomena of the mind. Do not confuse 
the two terms. 



The Pathology of Drunkenness 

To intelligently treat any disease we must have a 
reasonably good understanding of its cause and the 
conditions or effects produced by that cause. In other 
words, we first should know its Pathology. Pathology 
is a very common medical term derived from the Greek 
and means the science which treats of diseases, their 
causes, nature, signs or symptoms, the processes by 
which a disease progresses, the changes which it causes 
in the body and the results of those changes. You can 
at once see how really important the Pathology of 
Drunkenness is to anyone who wishes to cure it. 
Therefore I am sure that you will find the study of 
this chapter not only very instructive but highly inter- 
esting as well. 

Everyone knows the cause of Drunkenness to be 
the drinking of some form of alcoholic liquor, though 
very few non-medical men understand the physical and 
mental changes which it produces. Let me then present 
to you the facts which have been brought to light 
through the long study and experiment of observant, 
careful, and skilled physicians, who, in all parts of the 
world, have made the treatment and cure of inebriety 
their life work. 

Inasmuch as this work is primarily intended for 
those who are more interested in a method by which 
Drunkenness can be cured, than in its minute medical 
complexities, I will confine myself to stating the actual, 
proven, and accepted facts, without going into the de- 
tails of the research work by which they were demon- 
strated. You can accept these statements as truth, just 
as you do the declaration that the world is round, or 

11 



12 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

that the sun moves, even though you do not know the 
exact scientific manner in which these facts have been 
ascertained. 
The Usual Most persons have the idea that the harm 

Conception of done by alcohol is all seen during the stage 
Drunkenness, of actual intoxication, and if you will ask 
almost any non-medical man what Drunkenness is, he 
will tell that it is a condition produced by drinking 
some form of alcoholic liquor, wherein the drinker 
exhibits symptoms and performs actions not in keeping 
with his sober state. If he has been a close observer 
he may particularize and mention some or all of the 
following signs and indications: A heightened color 
of the face; a brightening of the eyes; talks freely or 
perhaps becomes reserved and silent. As more liquor 
is taken the symptoms are more marked and notice- 
able. Some drinkers become boisterous, loud, argu- 
mentative, garrulous and boastful. Some begin to 
look for trouble, a few become quieter and wish to get 
by themselves. Some wish to fight, while many loudly 
proclaim that they are "good fellows" and that they 
love the whole world. 

As intoxication progresses the voice becomes thick 
and the power of coherent thought and expression is 
lessened or entirely lost. This loss of intellectual con- 
trol is shown in ways that may be ludicrous, startling, 
disgusting or terrifying; depending entirely upon the 
manner in which alcohol affects each individual's 
mental make up. The eyes grow bloodshot and lose 
their lustre, the limbs become unsteady, the gait stag- 
gering. As the paralyzing effect of the alcoholic poison 
continues, control of the senses and bodily functions 
fades and the drinker sinks into a heavy sleep or 
drunken stupor from which it is difficult to arouse him. 
The sleep of intoxication will last from eight to 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 13 

twelve hours. The drinker awakens with an intense 
burning thirst, weak, shaky limbs, and feels as though 
his head were about to burst with its terrific throbs 
and aches. His tongue is "furry," he has "a horrible 
dark brown taste," and is often terribly nauseated. He 
is sick all over and fervently swears by all that's holy 
"Never again for him." 

While there are many other symptoms manifested 
by an intoxicated individual, yet the foregoing are the 
ones usually noticed. They are so indicative of the 
condition that no one, with even the most rudimentary 
powers of observation, can fail to make a correct diag- 
nosis of an ordinary case. After a few hours the out- 
ward signs of a spree have fairly well disappeared and 
the drinker is able to go about his ordinary affairs. He 
has "sobered up" and is now considered to be all 
right again, normal in every way. This is a general 
description of intoxication, but it does not define or 
describe the true Disease of Drunkenness, as we shall 
see. 
Where "Hell be all right when he sobers up" is 

the Real a common idea, but right there is where 

Trouble Lies, the great mistake is made. This belief is 
false in its conception and the result of ignorance of 
what has gone on underneath the surface. The visible 
and temporary effects are all that are usually noticed; 
when these pass away no further thought is given 
them until "the next time." As a matter of fact we 
need concern ourselves but little with the symptoms of 
intoxication. Our real interest should be given to 
knowing the unseen destruction which alcohol leaves 
behind after the outward signs of a spree have passed. 
You do not require any medical evidence to con- 
vince you that the entire body must be seriously in- 
jured by any drink which is powerful or poisonous 



14 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

enough to rob a man, even temporarily, of his reason 
and physical powers, and to produce symptoms such 
as are exhibited by an intoxicated person. If you saw 
an animal acting in the same way, you would at once 
exclaim — "It has been poisoned." Your common sense 
must then tell you that a drunken man also is pois- 
oned and that the bad effects of the poison must in 
some degree remain. Further you know that if he 
keeps up the poisoning process, by the continued use 
of liquor, the disease of the body and brain must con- 
stantly increase in seriousness. This is so self-evident 
that no one can doubt or disbelieve it. 

While you may realize that Drunkenness causes 
disease of the body, yet I want you to know exactly in 
what way and which particular parts are most af- 
fected, so you can then better understand the course 
which proper treatment must follow. For this reason 
I will take up the action of Alcohol on some of the 
organs of the body and its effects on the brain and 
nervous system and also describe some very marked 
and puzzling consequences of Drunkenness which 
show themselves as peculiarities in the drinker's Rea- 
soning, Will Power, and Mental Attitude toward 
things in general. You will be greatly interested in 
this as it will explain many things in a drinking man's 
conduct at which you have often wondered. 

As the katabolic or destructive action of alcohol 
upon the body is rather complex, and not easily under- 
stood except by those with medical training, the exact 
process of disorganization will not be discussed but 
the results of that process will be given in some detail. 
You are not particularly interested in knowing just 
how alcohol destroys, but you should know what it de- 
stroys. While only the principal organs will be men- 
tioned yet it must be borne in mind that the ruinous 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 15 

action of alcohol takes place to a degee in all portions 
of the body and subjects every part to its baneful in- 
fluence. With this foreword let us see what effect al- 
cohol has on the circulatory system. 

Effects of Alcohol on the Circulatory System 

You already know that "pure blood" and a "good 
circulation" are of the utmost importance to health. 
With them you will be strong and vigorous ; without 
them you are never well and, because of weakened re- 
sistance powers and lowered vitality, become easily 
infected with contagious diseases. For the same reason 
recovery from such diseases is also more difficult. Pure 
blood depends upon the number and vigor of the dif- 
ferent blood cells; good circulation depends upon the 
quantity of blood and the strength of the muscular 
walls of the heart and the arteries. To demonstrate 
then the highly destructive nature of alcohol, it should 
be only necessary to point out its indisputable effects 
upon the heart, arteries and blood cells, which we will 
do in the following paragraphs. 

Dilation and ^ ne °^ ^ e ^ rst e] ^ ects °f alcohol is a de- 
calcification tion of the capillaries. These are the little 
of Arteries. tiny, thin walled blood vessels which con- 
nect the arteries and the veins. The arteries as you 
know carry the oxygenated blood out from the heart 
to nourish the different parts of the body and the veins 
bring it back to be purified in the lungs and sent out 
again. The dilation of the capillaries often becomes 
permanent and is shown in the red face of chronic 
drinkers. The larger arteries become dilated also, and 
their muscular walls are weakened by "fatty degener- 
ation." Then follows calcification, producing the so- 
called "pipe stem arteries" of the dread "arterio 
sclerosis." The muscular and elastic walls of the 



16 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

arteries become just like a piece of old rubber tubing; 
hard, brittle and easily cracked. With a little extra 
blood pressure they are very apt to burst. The little 
arteries in the brain are peculiarly liable to this hard- 
ening and bursting and when they give way you have 
a case of apoplexy, paralysis and usually death. 

This loss of elasticity in the arteries, greatly re- 
tards the propulsion of the blood ; there is more resist- 
ance to be overcome and the heart has to work that 
much harder. The heart's muscular walls are also 
weakened by fatty degeneration just the same as the 
arteries and you have a condition where more work 
must be done, with less power to do it. You can read- 
ily see that "poor circulation" is bound to occur and 
that "heart failure" of one type or another must be a 
very common result. These conditions follow even 
the moderate use of intoxicants but vary in degree of 
severity according to the length of time of drinking, 
the amount of alcohol used, and the resistance powers 
of the drinker. 
Nourishment Dimin- The action of alcohol in diminish- 
ished and Body ing the elasticity and muscular con- 

Poisons Increased. tractility of the heart, arteries and 
capillaries interferes with the force and regularity of 
the blood current and causes "poor circulation." The 
impariment of nutrition and elimination follow as a 
result. The digestive organs select from the food such 
elements as the body requires to sustain life and ac- 
tivity ; these elements go directly into the blood stream 
and are carried by it to all parts of the body for its 
nourishment. When the blood stream fails to carry 
proper food, in sufficient quantities, to any certain part, 
that part becomes starved, weakened and a prey to 
disease. 

Into the blood stream also go the toxins or poisons 



AND HOW TO CURE IT IT 

which the body is constantly evolving. These body 
poisons are carried by the blood to various organs of 
elimination, the lungs, intestines, kidneys, liver and 
skin, where they are taken out of the blood and ex- 
creted from the body. Any interference with the 
prompt and thorough removal of these waste products 
and deleterious substances brings on an almost infinite 
variety of ailments, which grow steadily worse as the 
contamination of the blood current continues. 

Now it has been demonstrated that alcohol pre- 
vents the proper absorption of food and also limits the 
capacity of the blood to properly carry and distribute 
it. Further, it decreases the power of the organs of 
elimination to get rid of the body poisons and allows 
their accumulation in the system. Therefore it must 
follow that if the body is not properly nourished 
through the blood, and the body toxins are not re- 
moved, sicknesses of various kinds are bound to result. 
It cannot be otherwise. So here you have in a few 
words the basis of all diseases — improper nourishment 
and retention of body poisons, with alcohol as one of 
the great causative factors. 
Weakened Resistance Another way in which alcohol ef- 
to Infection and fects a deterioration of health and 

Other Diseases. strength is by demoralizing the in- 

tegrity of the red and white blood corpuscles or cells. 
To realize the possible extent of the damage from this 
cause, you need only to understand the principal func- 
tions and duties of these cells and the action of alcohol 
upon them. We will consider only one of the several 
functions of each cell but this will be ample for the 
purpose of our demonstration. 

Life, as you well know, is absolutely dependent 
upon a plentiful supply of Oxygen, which is taken 
from the air through the lungs, by them transmitted to 



18 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

the blood and carried to all parts of the body. Deprive 
the body of oxygen, then suffocation and death will 
follow in short order. Now oxygen is carried in the 
blood by the red cells and the use of any kind of alco- 
holic liquor markedly diminishes their oxygen carry- 
ing power. Alcohol also retards the ability of the 
lungs to eliminate the poisonous carbon-dioxide from 
the venous blood and to recharge it with oxygen. As 
a consequence the vitality of the entire body is low- 
ered, which means there must be a corresponding loss 
of physical and mental strength. 

The white cells are the soldiers and scavengers of 
the blood. Anything which weakens their strength 
and energy leaves the body open to attack from any 
of the microbian or bacterial diseases. The microbe 
of any disease, say typhoid fever, is harmless until it 
enters the blood stream, then it begins to multiply with 
astonishing rapidity and to produce its own peculiar 
toxin or poison. If left to themselves the number of 
these microbes would become so great and their poi- 
sons so virulent that death would be the certain result. 
The bacteria, however, are not allowed to have their 
own way. Immediately upon their entrance into the 
blood current they are attacked by the white blood 
corpuscles and absorbed, eaten up by them as it were. 

In any case of the so-called "germ diseases" there 
are millions of microbes and millions of white cells all 
engaged in a battle royal. If the white cells are strong 
and vigorous the patient is said to have good powers 
of resistance and the chances for his recovery are fa- 
vorable ; if the microbes get the upper hand he dies. 

Now it has been proven that any form of alco- 
holic liquor greatly weakens the microbe destroying 
power of the white cells and they become an army of 
cripples and wounded. Consequently, with a drinking 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 19 

man the microbes have the advantage right from the 
start. From this you will understand why there are 
far more deaths among drinkers, from such diseases 
as Tuberculosis, Typhoid Fever, Pneumonia, Erysipe- 
las and the like, than among total abstainers. 

Because of this condition of weakened resistance 
and feeble powers of recuperation, even ordinary sick- 
nesses become serious ones with a drinker, and it is 
with fear and trepidation that a surgeon consents to 
perform a major operation on one addicted to the use 
of alcohol. Considerably more might be said along 
these lines but the foregoing will be sufficient to make 
you thoroughly realize the exceedingly harmful effects 
which alcohol has upon the circulatory system. How- 
ever, before leaving the subject, I wish to say just a 
few words on the wide spread fallacy regarding the 
supposed heating or warming effects of intoxicants, 
when taken internally. 
Alcohol Does ^ upon feeling chilled or before going out 
Not Warm on a cold day you are accustomed to take 
the Body. a drink "to warm up," you will no doubt 

be inclined to disbelieve the statement that alcohol does 
not warm but cools you. But the fact is, the body tem- 
perature falls after taking alcohol, instead of rising. 
You feel warmer for a time, that is true, but the most 
careful and accurate scientific tests have proven that 
the internal temperature is lower than normal, instead 
of higher as you have believed. This fact accounts for 
the so-called "drunkard's shivering fits," which often 
occur with drinkers who are literally filled with 
whiskey. 

The reason for the seeming paradox, of feeling 
warmer and being colder, is this. Alcohol dilates the 
little arteries at surface of the body and increases the 
heart's action. This causes the hot blood from the in- 



20 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

terior to be carried more rapidly and in greater quan- 
tity to the surface and extremities, where it warms 
the ends of the sensory nerves which convey sensa- 
tions of heat and cold. These nerves being heated 
naturally carry a feeling or impression of warmth to 
the brain and you are firmly convinced that "that little 
drink just warmed me through and through." Actu- 
ally, however, the hot blood is taken from the interior 
and rapidly cooled at the surface so that the tempera- 
ture falls and the internal organs, which really need 
the heat and warmth, are deprived of it through a 
misunderstanding of alcohol's action. 

Just the reverse of this effect is seen in a case of 
ague, or chills and fever. During the chill period the 
patient feels as though he were being frozen, he can- 
not get warm no matter how much clothing he puts 
on or how near the heat he can squeeze. Yet his actual 
heat condition, as shown by the clinical thermometer, 
is far above the normal but he feels colds and says he 
is cold. The chill period passes, the blood rushes to 
the surface of the body and the patient then says he is 
"burning up" while the thermometer shows that as an 
actuality his temperature is now lower than during the 
time he thought himself freezing. 

All arctic explorers have found through experience 
that drinking men cannot stand the rigors of extreme 
cold, and the use of any form of alcohol as a beverage 
is strictly tabooed in all frigid climates. The range of 
your own observation perhaps has shown you how 
easily an intoxicated man is frozen to death when ex- 
posed to a degree of cold that does not prove at all 
harmful to one who is entirely sober. The moral is 
plain and unmistakable. 

Any drinking man wishing to test for himself the 
truth of the statement that alcohol does not really in- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 21 

crease body temperature can easily do so. When you 
are going to be exposed to the cold for an hour or two 
take a couple of drinks of whiskey before going out. 
Then note how quickly you lose that first feeling of 
warmth and how the cold seems to reach your very 
marrow. The next day note how warm you feel if 
you let liquor entirely alone and use a hot cup of cof- 
fee, tea or bowl of broth in its stead. 

Hot food is the best warmer that the body can 
have, but do not eat too heartily before going out as 
the process of digestion takes the blood to the diges- 
tive organs and the skin does not have quite the same 
supply, consequently there is a feeling of being chilled 
upon going out into the cold after a hearty meal. How- 
ever this chilly feeling will quickly pass and, as food to 
the body is the same as coal under a boiler, you will 
soon find yourself warm and comfortable. If exposed 
to cold for any length of time remember it is danger- 
ous in the extreme to use intoxicants. 

The Liver and Kidneys as Affected by Alcohol 

Every one is aware that when a physician is called 
upon to treat any form of liver or kidney trouble his 
first injunction is "Stop the use of all kinds of intoxi- 
cants !" and his advice is sound. Hundreds of years 
of clinical experience has shown that sufferers from 
these disorders do not make much progress toward re- 
covery as long as the use of alcohol is kept up. In 
other words it has been found useless to try to remove 
the disease effect as long as the disease cause is main- 
tained. 
Degeneration ^he ^ ver 1S t ^ ie l ar S est gland in the body 
and Cirrhosis and it also plays a most important role in 
of the Liver, the maintenance of health. Owing to its 
looseness of structure and the great quantity of blood 



22 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

which it contains (one- fourth of the entire amount in 
the body) the liver is rather easily affected by alco- 
holic poisoning, Fatty Degeneration and Atrophic 
Cirrhosis being the two most common derangements 
due principally to this cause. 

Fatty Degeneration of the Liver is characterized 
anatomically by a destruction of the liver substance, 
atrophy and a conversion of the albuminates of the 
cells into fat. The organ becomes much smaller than 
normal, light yellow in color, soft, pliable and easily 
torn. There is considerable pain, jaundice and dropsy. 
The disease is considered very serious, yet if it is due 
to alcohol alone, and not complicated with infection, it 
has a promising outlook if the exciting cause — alcohol 
— is removed. 

Atrophic Cirrhosis of the Liver, also called "nut- 
meg liver" and "gin drinker's liver" is due, almost al- 
ways, to the use of alcohol. Such well known authori- 
ties as Osier, Anders and Freyhan say they have found 
Inebriety to be the main cause in nearly all cases. It 
is more frequent with constant moderate drinkers 
rather than with the "spreers." Clinical history tends 
to prove that the stronger the alcoholic beverage, and 
the larger the amount consumed, the sooner the cir- 
rhosis develops, though the amount necessary to pro- 
duce the disease varies with different individuals. 
Compared to drunkenness, all other causes of cirrhosis 
are insignificant. 

In typical examples of cirrhosis the capsule or 
covering of the liver is thickened, the organ is greatly 
reduced in size, hard, granular and much altered in 
form. Owing to the hardening and decrease in size 
the active liver cells are squeezed out of shape, and 
their power to perform their functions is greatly de- 
creased or lost entirely. The outcome of cirrhosis is 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 23 

decidedly unfavorable unless the trouble is recognized 
early and the use of alcohol stopped. 
Alcoholic Among the Kidney derangements 

Inflammations of which have the habitual use of alco- 
the Kidneys. holies as a predisposing or the chief 

cause, are the acute and chronic inflammations often 
known as Acute and Chronic Bright's Disease. Acute 
inflammation may come on suddenly after a hard 
spree, or as the result of exposure consequent to a 
drinking bout. The symptoms are very severe and 
painful and the disease lasts from two days to several 
weeks. Severe cases may result fatally in a few days. 
The Chronic inflammations are comparatively slow in 
development and may become serious before they cause 
the patient sufficient annoyance to make him seek 
medical advice. 

The chronically congested, fatty kidneys occur 
most frequently in beer drinkers, while the small, hard, 
fibrous kidneys (the conditions known as chronic in- 
terstitial nephritis) are found in those using the 
strongly alcoholic drinks, as whiskey, brandy or gin. 
The outlook for a cure in advanced cases is not good, 
though if the disease is recognized early and careful 
attention paid to hygenic and dietetic measures, the 
patient may live many years in comparative comfort. 

The kidneys are organs for the elimination and 
excretion of waste products and body poisons. If 
rendered unfit by alcohol for the proper performance 
of their functions the whole body must and does suf- 
fer as a consequence. Therefore, if we have any form 
of kidney disease, our common sense should tell us to 
stop at once the use of intoxicants, but how seldom is 
this done? Everything else is blamed for the trouble 
except liquor, and everything else is readily given up 
except the one thing which is the cause of it all. What 



24 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

a lot of brains it takes to have common sense, doesn't 
it? 

You can readily understand that any inflamma- 
tion will greatly interfere with the proper perform- 
ance of function. If your eye is inflamed you have 
difficulty in seeing, if your throat is inflamed it is hard 
to talk or swallow, if a muscle is inflamed it is painful 
to move the part it controls. The same interference 
with function is true of inflammation in any other part 
of the body and that is why inflammation of any organ 
is so productive of distressing and disastrous results. 

While on this subject just let me say a word about 
gin. The wide-spread notion that "Gin is good for the 
kidneys," is both false and dangerous. Most drinkers 
think that gin has some medicinal virtues and that it 
is made from juniper berries and therefore a benefit. 
Gin is a strong, alcoholic liquor distilled from rye and 
barley and supposedly flavored with juniper berries. 
As a matter of fact, most gin is -flavored with turpen- 
tine and just ask your physician what turpentine will 
do to your kidneys. Don't try to fool yourself or 
anyone else that an alcoholic drink, of any kind, is 
medicine. 

Alcoholic Disorders of the Stomach and Intestines 

The effect of the steady use of liquor upon the 
stomach and intestines is to produce functional dis- 
turbances rather than disease of structure. From your 
own observations you know that a drinker complains 
of a hundred and one ailments and disagreeable sen- 
sations which he describes somewhat indefinitely as 
"stomach troubles." Their cause is alcoholic, though 
only rarely can you get him to admit it. 

During a period of excessive indulgences the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 25 

stomach becomes highly inflamed and congested. Its 
feverish condition precludes the possibility of retain- 
ing and digesting solid foods and there is loss of appe- 
tite and often extreme nausea. You are probably 
familiar with that form of indigestion known as 
"Drunkards' Dyspepsia." The intestines are also in- 
flamed, but to a lesser extent. Some drinkers will be 
very much constipated, others just the reverse. 

The regular use of liquor results in an habitual 
congestion of the mucous membrane which lines the 
stomach and intestines. This congestion is in reality 
a low type of inflammation. The walls of the stomach 
become coated with a thick tenacious mucous which 
causes nausea and vomiting, especially in the morning, 
and it also interferes with the digestion and assimila- 
tion of food. The same condition obtains, to a lesser 
degree, in the intestines. The result is the chronic 
catarrh of the stomach and intestines from which so 
many drinkers suffer. 

Among beer drinkers, who consume large quanti- 
ties of this beverage, dilation or enlargement of the 
stomach is rather common. This causes an interfer- 
ence with the action of the heart, also of the lungs, 
and a distressing train of symptoms is the result. 

The appetite of a drinker is usually very 
capricious. As a rule they are great meat eaters and 
inordinately fond of condiments, relishes and highly 
seasoned foods. This is due partly to the abnormal 
condition of the stomach creating abnormal desires 
and partly to the fact that liquor dulls the acuteness 
of the "taste buds" in the tongue and renders them un- 
able to appreciate fine distinctions in flavors. In order 
to make his food "taste" the drinker resorts to high 
seasonings. 

In very small amounts, and much diluted, alcohol 



26 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

is said to aid digestion by inciting an increased flow of 
the digestive juices. This in a measure is true, but here 
again the drinker does not discriminate between suf- 
ficient to produce this result and an overdose. When 
taken in the quantities ordinarily consumed, alcohol 
instead of being a help to digestion actually tends to 
arrest the process and renders the assimilation of 
nourishment imperfect. This has been demonstrated 
time and time again. Its truth needs no further proof 
than your own knowledge of the fact that meat and 
vegetable specimens can be preserved almost indefi- 
nitely in alcohol. Again your common sense tells you 
that an agent strong enough to act as such a preserva- 
tive must hinder, rather than help, a process as intri- 
cate as digestion. 



Were we to investigate the action of alcohol upon 
all the other organs and tissues, we would find the 
same destructive process going on in each of them. 
There would, of course, be a difference in the degree 
of severity and mode of manifestation, but the general 
effect is very similar. From what has been said you 
can understand that the effect of alcohol on all the 
different organs is poisonous and injurious and further 
evidence would but complicate the subject. There- 
fore I shall not particularize on each organ but close 
the chapter by describing the effects of alcohol on the 
brain and nerves. 

Physical Effects of Alcohol Upon The Brain and 
Nerves 

Serious as are the results of alcoholic poisoning 
upon the organs already considered, yet they are as 
nothing when compared to its effect upon the brain 
and nerves. The evidences of injury here assume a 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 27 

very different character. They are both physical and 
psychical. Under the head of pathology we shall con- 
sider only the physical aspects, leaving the psychical, 
which involves the drinker's thoughts, beliefs, actions 
and habits, to be discussed in the chapter which fol- 
lows. 
The Injury and ^ * s we ^ to remember that the entire 
Destruction of body is composed of countless tiny cells, 
Nerve Cells. and that each organ and tissue has 

types of cells peculiar to itself. Each different type of 
cell has its own particular function or duty to perform 
in keeping the body machinery in perfect running 
order. The functions of some cells are very simple 
while those of others are extremely complex and re- 
quire a high degree of development of the cell itself. 
Exhaustive research work has shown that the higher 
the type of cell, the more sensitive it is to alcoholic in- 
fluence. Because the highest type of cells and those 
having the most complex functions are found in the 
brain and nerves, and also because the nervous mechan- 
ism of the cerebral arteries causes alcohol to remain 
longer in the circulation of the brain than in any other 
tissue, it is in the nervous system that we will find the 
more profound manifestations of damage and destruc- 
tion. 

The exact process of cell injury is not yet fully 
agreed upon. Some authorities hold that alcohol's 
well known affinity for water causes it to extract the 
water from the cell and thus render it unfit for serv- 
ice. Others say it attacks the cell because of its fat; 
either dissolving the fat or having its narcotic princi- 
ple dissolved in the fatty substance, and that the 
change, in some unknown way, interferes with the cell 
function, whatever it may be. But though authorities 
may differ as to the precise manner of alcohol's attack, 



28 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

yet all agree that it seems to have a peculiar paralyz- 
ing and corrosive effect upon all brain and nerve cells. 
The damage done is shown by physiological and 
psychological tests, also by the examination of brain 
and nerve tissue under the microscope. 

Upon examination the cells are found to be 
shrunken, wasted, and full of evidences of disintegra- 
tion and degeneration. The coverings of the brain 
are thickened, and the brain itself is atrophied and 
hardened. Not all the cells are injured, nor can the 
exact proportion be determined. At first only a small 
portion of the brain or a limited number of nerves may 
be involved, consequently the outward manifestations 
will not be very noticeable. Gradually the affected area 
enlarges and you have a corresponding increase in the 
number and severity of the outward or visible signs 
of the nerve tissue destruction going on within. 

The Paralyzing The first g eneral effect of alcohol is 
Effects of popularly supposed to be that of a power- 

Alcohol, ful stimulant, quickening and strength- 

ening all mental and physical action. There is a com- 
mon belief that a man under the influence of small 
doses of spirits becomes more mentally alert, more 
brilliant and possesses more bodily strength. Authori- 
ties now agree that just the reverse is true. That in- 
stead of being a stimulant, alcohol is a devitalizing, 
demoralizing narcotic, and paralyzing depressant. The 
apparent evidence of increased mental activity under 
alcohol has proved, for the most part, to be illusory 
when carefully investigated. 

Instead of exciting the motor apparatus to in- 
creased activity, the now most widely recognized 
theory is that alcohol paralyzes the regulating appa- 
ratus, and, as it were, permits the mind to run without 
control. The subject in this condition is not able to 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 29 

judge correctly or discern his real weaknesses. The 
effect of paralyzing the inhibitory centers of the 
brain can very well be compared to the results which 
would follow the destruction of the fly-wheel of a 
powerful engine or the balance-wheel of a watch. The 
machinery would run faster for the time being but 
would not generate as much power, and running 
"wild," without check or control, would soon wreck 
itself. 

A mental instability in many so-called moderate 
drinkers is shown by their extreme susceptibility to 
delirium, of either a violent or muttering type, which 
seems to occur from the slightest of causes. Thus a 
slight illness due to constipation or mild infections, a 
blow on the head, a fall, shocks of different kinds or a 
fit of anger brings on delirium. Such persons are also 
very prone to develop various neurotic diseases and 
begin to use spirits excessively. They are also liable 
to sudden, extreme prostration and exhaustion without 
sufficient cause. 
The Impairment Am ong the early physical evidences or 
of the Five symptoms of nerve affectation are de- 

Senses, fects in the different sense perceptions. 

A drinker will often complain that his eyes are weak, 
his sight poor and if glasses are worn they have to be 
changed frequently. The eyes themselves, while per- 
haps bright for a short time during the active intoxi- 
cation, soon grow dull and later watery; in extreme 
cases "bleary eyed" expresses their appearance. The 
hearing is often faulty, and complaints of head noises, 
ringing or buzzing in the ears are very common. 

As before mentioned, the sense of taste loses its 
acuteness and an unusual fondness for spices, pepper, 
relishes, pickles and highly seasoned foods of various 
kinds often develops. The inability to recognize and 



30 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

to differentiate odors shows affectation of the center 
for the sense of smell. The tactile sense, or sense of 
touch and feeling, becomes blunted and uncertain. 
Those whose work demands a high development of 
this sense soon find their work falling off both in 
amount and excellence. 
Muscular When the integrity of the nerves which sup- 
Power ply the various muscles is attacked, lack of 
Weakened, strength and muscular control puts in an ap- 
pearance. The drinker is not sure of himself either in 
thought or action. His hand is shaky, his legs are un- 
steady and he feels "wobbly" all over. After a few 
drinks he may regain a semblance of his control but 
only while the effect of the liquor lasts, then he is as 
bad or worse than before. He loses the "ginger" and 
"get up and get" that he should have. He is easily ex- 
hausted and has no staying power; he can and does 
begin many things but he lacks the stamina and deter- 
mination to "stick to the finish." His capacity for all 
kinds of work, both mental and physical, is greatly 
decreased, but lacking the power of correct judgment 
he seldom can be made to realize or acknowledge it. 
Other Besides the impairment of function due to 
Nerve nerve disturbance there are numerous 
Disturbances, aches and pains which are ascribable to the 
same cause. Many, so-called, rheumatic pains, par- 
ticularly of the lower extremities and when accom- 
panied with cramps and numbness, are due to alcoholic 
inflammation of the nerves and disappear when the 
use of alcohol ceases and its toxins are removed. 

Affectation of other nerves is made manifest by 
irregularities of appearance and action in such parts 
as have a particular nerve supply. No matter what 
part of the body is considered, its real strength is 
determined by the amount of "nerve energy" with 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 31 

which it is supplied. Anything which lessens the force 
conveying power of a nerve, weakens the part sup- 
plied by that nerve. If the nerve force is shut off en- 
tirely the part supplied becomes paralyzed and useless. 
With this knowledge of the effect of alcohol upon the 
nerve cells it is not so hard to account for the wide- 
spread physical and mental disturbances which so 
commonly make their appearance in those indulging in 
intoxicants. 

This brings us now to the effects of alcohol upon 
the mind and we will discuss this phase in the next 
chapter. 



The Fancies, Vagaries and Beliefs of 
Drinkers 

While it is impossible, during life, to see the brain 
cells themselves, as damaged by alcohol, yet the effects 
of that damage are plainly shown by the characteristic 
thoughts and beliefs entertained by all drinkers. No 
doubt you have often observed the delusions which a 
drinker may have in relation to himself and his in- 
temperance and you may have wondered why one of 
apparently sound sense should show such defective 
reasoning where his own drinking is concerned, and 
why he should cling so tenaciously to false beliefs 
when the evidence of his self deception is patent to all. 
I venture to say you have considered such delusions as 
being peculiar to the one particular drinker under your 
observation and have not realized that they are among 
the common manifestations of Inebriety. 

As you read this you may have in mind a drinker 
with whose actions, thoughts and beliefs you are very 
familiar. If so, observe how closely he can be de- 
scribed to you by one who has never seen him. Not 
only are his actions portrayed but even his very 
thoughts regarding his drinking are laid bare. This 
is not chance, nor is it mind reading, it is merely be- 
cause Drunkenness is a disease and any one who un- 
derstands its pathology and its psychology knows how 
it must make itself manifest. 

Every beginner is firmly imbued with 

Believ^Drink the *dea that liquor will never harm or 

Will Injure Him. injure him and that he will always 

drink in moderation. The example of the countless 

thousands before him, who have succumbed to King 

32 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 33 

Alcohol contains no warning, nor will he profit from 
their experience. Tell him that he is sure to create an 
appetite for drink that is certain to overwhelm him in 
the end and he will indignantly deny it. He declares 
that he is perfect master of himself and always will be. 
He may even claim that he is actually benefited, physic- 
ally and mentally, by the use of intoxicants. He will 
readily agree, however, that if he ever notices that 
liquor is doing him any harm he will stop its use at 
once, but it is usually very difficult to get him to do 
any noticing along those lines. 

Call his attention to some poor chap whose ruin is 
easily apparent and he will say: "Yes, I know all 
about him and I am sorry for him. He had no will- 
power, but I am different. I know what I am doing, 
he didn't." They all think they are "different" and 
all believe that they are just a little bit wiser than any- 
one who has ever drank before. They are egotistical 
in the extreme in their faith in themselves and in their 
strength of character and will-power. This very satis- 
faction, with themselves and their opinions, serves to 
blind them to their danger until the liquor appetite has 
become firmly fastened upon them. This egotistic 
confidence in the peculiar and particular strength of 
their will-power also keeps them from acknowledging 
their mistake and seeking that help which everyone but 
their deluded selves can see they sorely need. 
May Believe ^ * s no unusua l thing to find a drinker 
His Drinking who believes that he has so carefully con- 
Concealed, cealed his drinking that no one is aware 
of it but himself. No matter how apparent it is to 
others, if charged with using intoxicants, such a one 
will enter an indignant denial and swear by all that is 
great and holy that he does not use liquor in any form. 
If attention is called to extraordinary acts which he 



34 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

has committed while intoxicated he will either deny 
them in toto or offer the most ingenious excuses and 
explanations to prove that his conduct was due to 
other causes. 

Despite all evidences to the contrary he will main- 
tain his teetotalism with a breath to which you almost 
would be afraid to touch a match for fear of an alco- 
holic explosion. He imagines that he has cleverly dis- 
guised his failings and that you really believe his often 
fantastic reasons for his appearance and actions. 
Can Always There is one delusion so common to all 
Stop When classes of drinkers that it can be said to be 
He Chooses, found as often in Inebriety as a rash in 
measles or chills and fever with ague. This is the be- 
lief that he can stop drinking any time he chooses and 
for just as long as he elects. Through all the various 
stages of his drinking experience, from the beginning, 
when he indulges only occasionally and in moderation, 
to the time when he gets drunk whenever he has the 
opportunity and the price, he asserts that he is the 
master of his appetite and can control it if he so de- 
sires. 

As a usual rule, the more positive a drinker is in 
his declaration that he can stop drinking without ef- 
fort, the more he is in need of treatment. It seems 
the more strongly the appetite fastens upon him the 
greater appears his determination to defend his use of 
alcohol as a tonic or rejuvenant. He may actually 
point to himself as an example and proof of its bene- 
ficial effects, when a mere glance, from one who sees 
him as he really is, is sufficient to show otherwise. 

This persistent claim, in reality a delusion coupled 
with false pride, prevents his acknowledging that the 
craving for drink is too strong to be resisted and the 
poor chap goes from bad to worse despite the efforts of 






AND HOW TO CURE IT 35 

family and friends. Getting a drinker to realize and 
admit his need for treatment is by far more difficult 
than it is to cure him completely of the appetite. This 
one thing is the greatest obstacle to be overcome in 
the satisfactory handling of the disease. This feature 
and a manner of dealing with it, from a new stand- 
point, will be more fully discussed when we take up 
the various curative methods. 
The The egotism of the drinker is worthy of note. 

Drinker's Have you ever marked how the confidence in 
Egotism, his ability to do great things increases with 
the number of his drinks ? From an ordinary individ- 
ual he becomes the greatest of the great. There is 
nothing that he cannot accomplish and he feels compe- 
tent to offer advice to all persons and on all affairs. 
His wisdom transcends that of King Solomon and his 
judgment is infallibility itself. With a steady drinker 
a similar state of mind often persists, even during his 
periods of comparative sobriety. You have perhaps ob- 
served that one who is much given to the use of liquor 
is usually ready with his opinions and advice. More- 
over he places a high estimate on his own ability and is 
always on the point of great accomplishment. But you 
undoubtedly also have noticed how rarely do his prom- 
ises reach fulfillment. 

He is incapable of correctly judging himself and 
therefore cannot see himself as others see him. His 
precepts and his practice may be utterly inconsistent, 
but he can see no incongruity therein and believes all 
the world wrong but himself. A drinker who loses 
his social and business standing because of his intem- 
perance seldom realizes his degradation. He overesti- 
mates his own worth to such an extent that his abase- 
ment seems, in his eyes, an exaltation. Even the 
drinker who is supported by his wife or family, while 



36 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

he spends his time in a saloon, thinks himself a good 
citizen and a valuable member of society. If he has a 
trade he will assert that he is a far better workman 
than anyone he knows. He is specially persistent in 
this latter opinion, if he at sometime has been excep- 
tionally skilled in any particular line. 
Delusions The drinker often believes himself wronged by 
of Perse- his family or friends and complains loudly and 
cution. long that he is being abused and persecuted. 
This belief takes many different forms and finds some 
rather startling ways of expression. It is common for 
him to think that his family no longer cares for him 
and he abuses them as a consequence. It makes him 
angry when his children shrink from contact with him 
when intoxicated and he declares their minds have 
been poisoned against him. He often goes so far as to 
accuse his family of infidelity and treachery toward 
him and this delusion has resulted in countless trag- 
edies. 

He impugns the honesty and honor of his asso- 
ciates without cause or reason. Should he meet with 
business reverses, lose his position or sufifer in a social 
way, he seldom admits that his drunkenness is the 
real cause but thinks and declares that he is the victim 
of a plot to disgrace and ruin him. When these symp- 
toms recur with frequency, indicating as they do that 
the ideas are firmly fixed, they show marked alcoholic 
degeneration tending toward suicidal or homicidal 
mania. A drinker of this type requires prompt and 
efficient treatment as neglect may result in his commis- 
sion of a serious crime to avenge his supposed wrong. 
Th Another of the mental phases is shown by a 

Memory progressive deterioration of the faculty of 
Is Faulty, memory. A total inability to recall what has 
taken place during the course of a hard spree is of 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 37 

such common occurrence that almost every drinker has 
experienced it. This loss of the power of recollection 
may only extend to the events of a few hours or per- 
haps to those of several days. It may be complete or 
only partial. Upon recovery the patient will usually 
say he does not remember a thing that happened after 
such and such a time until he "woke up." 

During this period he may have conducted himself 
so well that it would be hard to convince an observer 
that he was intoxicated. He may have taken a journey 
or transacted important business but will have no re- 
membrance of his acts. Again he may have commit- 
ted all kinds of excesses, even crime, and have no 
recollection of what he had done. 

These facts are often made the basis of a defense 
for a crime committed while drunk. The claim is 
made that the defendant is not criminally responsible 
because he was under the influence of liquor to an ex- 
tent that the powers of reason were lost, as indicated 
by his inability to recall what had transpired. 

As the brain becomes more seriously affected by 
the progressive poisoning, the memory for events 
which take place during the period of sobriety becomes 
faulty also. It is hard for the drinker to recollect with 
ease and certainty. His mental images are poor and 
indistinct, though in the event of a controversy he is 
very prone to maintain that his recollection of the case 
is absolutely right and everyone else is wrong. He can 
vividly recall events that happened years before but 
gets badly mixed on the recent ones. This same condi- 
tion obtains in extreme old age, even in total abstain- 
ers, but the use of alcohol may bring on this senile 
change in drinkers under thirty. 



38 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

His Judgment *' 1S difficult for a drinker to keep up a 
and Efficiency sustained mental effort requiring the ex- 
Below Par. ercise of judgment and reason. His pow- 

ers of observation have been blunted to a degree which 
prevents him from seeing things clearly and of going to 
the bottom of any subject. He cannot acquire facts for 
himself nor can he draw correct conclusions from such 
as are presented to him by another. His power of 
reasoning is deficient and his entire mental efficiency 
decreased to far below normal. He cannot think 
quickly or decide promptly. The speed of the nerve 
impulse is lessened and his actions, mental and physi- 
cal, are slowed in consequence. 

His moral judgment seems specially liable to de- 
basement and there is a lowering of standards all 
around. One who formerly was never satisfied unless 
he put forth his best endeavors becomes indifferent and 
slipshod in his methods. He becomes careless in his 
personal habits and his work is slighted at every op- 
portunity. Seldom can he be made to see that his 
mental and physical capacity has in any way suffered. 
If he does realize his failing ability he is more than 
likely to attribute his deterioration to other causes. 
When censured for poor work or discharged from his 
position he blames anything or anybody but alcohol for 
his trouble. 

All large industrial institutions employing men 
whose work demands accuracy of judgment, quickness 
of thought, and promptness in action, recognize the 
fact that liquor unfits a man for any degree of respon- 
sibility and therefore require that employees shall be 
strictly sober or be subject to discharge. The enforce- 
ment of this rule is every day becoming more stringent 
and more general as it has been found necessary for 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 39 

the protection of business and property and to guard 
the safety of the general public. 

As stated a few pages back, alcohol paralyzes the 
"balance-wheel" of the mind, so that under its influ- 
ence conservative men of sound judgment often be- 
come extremely reckless and by speculation or foolish 
policies completely wreck a business or reputation 
that it has taken years of toil and effort to build up. 
In commercial circles this is considered in all applica- 
tions for credit or money accommodations, A busi- 
ness man who is known to be a drinker cannot secure 
as high a commercial rating, or as good credit as one 
who is an abstainer, moreover creditors keep close 
track of him as they know that he is liable to jeopar- 
dize the collection of their money through acts com- 
mitted while under the influence of drink. 

Examples without number can be given as to the 
grievous effect of spirits upon a man's judgment and 
efficiency, in fact they are so common that from your 
own observation you can supply any others that may be 
needed to complete the argument. 
Will Power Presumably every drinker since time be- 
and Initiative gan has been urged to use his Will Power 
Lacking. to overcome his craving for drink. The 

only trouble with the advice is that a confirmed drunk- 
ard has no power to will against his obsession. He 
may say he wants to quit and promises never to touch 
another drop but the promise is broken almost as soon 
as made. All the rewards of sobriety, a loving wife 
and family, a happy home, a successful business, the 
confidence and respect of the community may be at 
stake, but he lacks the ability to make the necessary 
effort. 

The lack of will power is shown by many in- 
decisions of character and lack of stability. Do not 



40 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

confound will with stubbornness. Will implies deci- 
sion as well as action, and decision is the fruit of 
observation, judgment and reason. Stubbornness 
usually implies lack of reason, and, if a habitual trait, 
it shows lack of ability to reason. The habitual exer- 
cise of Will Power marks a man outwardly so plainly 
that "he who runs may read." It is seen in the firm 
set of the jaw, the upheld head, the indrawn chin, the 
firm step, and the level, unwavering eye. You will 
admit that the appearance of the confirmed drinker is 
far from the above picture. 

The confirmed drinker lacks the power of initia- 
tive; that is, he cannot act intelligently and success- 
fully on his own responsibility. Lacking the power 
of correct judgment and reason he cannot originate 
or do constructive thinking. Attempts along these 
lines are painful to him and, if undertaken at all, 
require much time and effort. He may be able to 
attend fairly well to routine duties, especially when 
they have become habitual by reason of many repeti- 
tions. He may be able to carry out plans made by 
another, but only rarely can he do effectual planning 
himself. 

It will profit but little to enumerate in further 
detail all the ways in which alcohol weakens the will 
power and the spirit of initiative, nor will I devote 
more time to describing the various idiosyncrasies 
which are to be met with in the study of inebriety, as 
the foregoing will be sufficient to give you a fairly 
accurate idea of how a drinker's abnormal mental 
processes show themselves in his beliefs and actions. 
Before leaving the subject, however, I wish to enlarge 
a little on a point which, although it has already been 
mentioned, yet a little further knowledge may enable 
you to better understand the changes which a drinker's 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 41 

character undergoes as he descends the scale from 
"beginner'' to confirmed and chronic "inebriate. " 

The Result of the Higher Brain Centers Being 
Most Affected 

Physical and As mentioned in the previous chapter, 

Moral Standards alcohol has a special predilection for 
Are Debased. such cells of the brain as are directly 

associated with the chief intellectual processes. It 
seems to narcotize and paralyze the brain cells and 
centers which control the higher of man's powers and 
attributes. The result is a gradual retrogressive change 
in the drinker's characteristics. For this reason the 
more highly educated he is, the more sensitive his ner- 
vous make up, the more fully he is endowed with pride 
of character, sense of duty, loyalty and obligation to 
others, the greater his truthfulness, honor, love of 
home, family and friends the more noticeable will be 
the evidences of alcoholic degeneration, as shown by 
the gradual change for the worse in his habits and 
character. 

The old adage, "The higher you go the further 
you fall," can be well applied to the effects of drunken- 
ness upon the character, thoughts and actions of dif- 
ferent drinkers. The characteristics of a man who, as 
a teetotaller, is mean, ugly and vicious would not 
change very markedly should he become an inebriate. 
They might grow a little worse or become accentuated 
but they would not be greatly altered in their nature. 
This is because he has allowed his brute instincts to 
predominate and to govern him when sober and is 
already so low in his moral and ethical conduct that 
he cannot drop much farther, even when intoxicated. 
It is different with a man of great intellectuality 
and refined personality. During intoxication his 



42 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

higher and nobler faculties are for the time being put 
to sleep, while the vicious and animal part of his 
nature gets a chance to assert itself. As a result, he, 
who when sober is a gentleman in every thought and 
act, when drunk often becomes coarse, vulgar and 
guilty of the grossest acts against decency and moral- 
ity. There is such a great difference in his conduct 
when drunk and when sober that he seems to possess 
two entirely distinct and separate characters. 
His True Colors Drink never brings out the best in any 
Not Shown man but always the worst. The saying 

When Drunk. that a drunken man shows himself in 
his true colors is absolutely false. Neither does he 
always speak the truth as some misguided persons 
would have you believe. In vino Veritas (In wine 
there is truth) is false doctrine. He may talk more 
freely and perhaps make disclosures of things which 
he would have kept to himself if sober, but this is 
merely an indication of loss of control. Naturally 
morose persons may become merry during the first 
stages of intoxication or jovial ones grow surly under 
its depressing after effects, but this temporary state 
is not at all an indication of their normal condition. 
Let us apply just a little thought and common 
sense to this question. Let us take for instance the 
case of a periodic drinker who gets drunk every sixty 
days and whose sprees last from three days to a week. 
For about fifty days out of the sixty he is all that 
could be asked of any man; for the remaining ten he 
is more or less under the influence of alcohol. Let us 
suppose during this time, when he is incapable of 
exercising his powers of reason, that he should exhibit 
in his speech and actions a coarseness, even a brutal- 
ity, not at all in keeping with his conduct during the 
sober period. Could you make yourself think that his 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 43 

thoughts and actions during this time — expressions of 
an alcohol poisoned and narcotized brain — are the 
predominating traits and an exemplification of the 
real man in full possession of his sober senses? They 
are not and don't you ever believe they are. 

But do not lose sight of the fact that a brain 
poisoned by alcohol is not a normal brain. It cannot 
think absolutely normal thoughts, it cannot inspire 
absolutely normal actions. If the poisoning process is 
kept up day after day the powers of the brain are grad- 
ually lessened and the drinker sinks lower and lower in 
the mental scale. The degraded condition of thought, 
which at first was in evidence only during actual in- 
toxication, then becomes his habitual state of mind and 
his acts are correspondingly lower and coarser in 
accordance with his thoughts. 
The Difference We keep ourselves above the level of the 
Between Man brute creation only by the exercise of our 
and Brute. reasoning faculties and through the senti- 

mental and emotional side of our natures. These are 
the higher qualities and faculties of the mind. The 
more they are developed and used, the farther you 
raise yourself above the brute. The more stunted and 
dormant they are the nearer you approach the brute's 
level. Anything which blunts our emotions and finer 
feelings and at the same time deprives the mind of 
its ability to reason soon robs us of our true manhood 
even though we still retain the outward semblance. 
There is an immutable Law of Nature which 
makes it impossible for anything animate to stand still. 
You must progress and live, or deteriorate and die. 
Every living thing must and does follow this law. 
Only look around you and you will see that when a 
man, beast, bird, plant, tree or anything which has 
what we call life, reaches its maximum growth, 



44 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

strength and usefulness, it begins to decline to ultimate 
death and dissolution. In effect Nature says to all 
living things : " Advancement and service are the price 
you pay for existence ; stand still or go backward, and 
you perish. ,, 

This law applies to man's higher faculties. They 
must be kept in active use if they are to be preserved. 
They must constantly grow and expand, otherwise 
Nature makes certain that they will become weaker 
and weaker until, to all intents and purposes, they are 
lost entirely. Now, as you know, a drinking man 
loses control of his higher faculties during the time 
he is intoxicated. If he is a constant drinker they 
are never completely and entirely under his domina- 
tion. What is the result? During the periods of 
intoxication, which tend to increase in frequency, his 
better nature is drugged into semi-unconsciousness 
and the brute in him gets a chance to make itself seen 
and felt. The oftener it gets this opportunity the 
more difficult it is to subdue and keep under. It grows 
stronger and stronger as the alcoholic poisoning 
progresses, until the balance turns and the drinker's 
better nature is subjugated to his selfish instincts and 
grosser desires. The bad now predominates and his 
moral destruction is well nigh complete. 

The range of your own personal observations, I 
believe, has been sufficient to enable you to verify 
every statement that has been made regarding the 
destructive effects of drunkenness, from both a physical 
and mental standpoint. You never have known an 
individual who owed his success to his drinking, while 
countless thousands can trace their failures in business 
and social life and their loss of health directly to their 
use of intoxicants. While much more evidence will 
be presented yet what has already been said must fully 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 45 

convince you that Drunkenness is a Physical and 
Mental Disease and, as such it must be considered 
and treated if any measure of permanent relief is to 
be expected or secured. 



Three Classes of Drinkers 

From an analytical and scientific view drinkers 
may be divided into many different classes. In fact, 
each individual may show some slight variation from 
all others in the manner and effects of his drinking. 
But as a minute classification would only serve to 
confuse, without adding to your practical knowledge 
of the subject, I shall divide them into only three 
general classes — the Constant, the Periodical, and the 
Voluntary or Occasional drinker. Each of these 
classes has its "moderate" and "hard" drinking types, 
and each its different stages. A little study of each 
class in general, with an allowance for slight indi- 
vidual variations, will enable you to correctly group 
the different drinkers under your consideration. 
What Is Before going further it might be well to say 
Moderate just a word or two about "moderate drink- 
Drinking? ing." Nearly every user of intoxicants claims 
that he drinks only "moderately," but each and every 
one has a different idea as to how much one can drink 
and still be moderate. As a matter of fact there is 
no way of determining just where the line of safety 
should be drawn for each individual. The amount 
would vary in each case and could only be determined 
by careful observation of the effects in each instance. 
The drinker's opinion as to what constitutes modera- 
tion in his case is of little value as he is incapable of 
judging for himself and his decision is sure to be 
biased in his own favor. 

Speaking from a purely physiological standpoint 
I would say that one drink of whiskey, beer, or wine 
each day will not be productive of a great deal of 

46 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 47 

harm. This statement presupposes that the individual 
is not peculiarly susceptible to the poison of alcohol 
and that the organs of elimination are functioning 
normally. The severity of the effects of drink seem 
to be in proportion to the amount of alcohol consumed 
and the regularity with which it is taken. Naturally, 
the strong and robust individuals have more power 
of resistance than others and the severe effects are not 
so quickly apparent. The nervous types are more 
quickly and severely affected than are those of 
phlegmatic temperaments. 

Many a drinker considers himself "moderate" as 
long as he can give some attention to his business 
and does not stagger when he walks. He says: "I 
never get drunk, you have never seen me when I 
couldn't look after my business, I am only a moderate 
drinker." At the same time he may be taking five to 
ten drinks, maybe more, each day. He also considers 
his ability to drink a great quantity of liquor without 
showing it as evidence of a strong head. 

This type of drinker is anything but moderate. 
His ability to drink without feeling the effects is be- 
cause the body after a time acquires a certain "toler- 
ance" for the poison of alcohol, just as it does for a 
great number of other poisons, and one who is accus- 
tomed to drink can take much more without showing 
the effects than can a novice. A poor, old, barrel- 
house sot requires several drinks of spirits before he 
can steady his limbs, but one-quarter of the amount 
would make an abstemious athlete roaring drunk. 
You know this to be true, but I don't believe that you 
for a moment think that the confirmed alcoholic, be- 
cause he could stand more drink, had a "better" and 
"stronger" head than the athlete. As a rule the more 



48 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

liquor a steady drinker can stand without intoxication 
the more apt he is to be in need of treatment. 

If there is any "safety mark" up to which one 
may go without danger it is practically out of the 
question to define it or to keep within it. The use of 
alcohol has a tendency to create a constantly increas- 
ing demand for more, and therein lies the danger of 
"moderate drinking." The evidence in thousands of 
cases goes to show that the moderate drinker soon 
grows immoderate. A glass or two each day soon 
becomes more, and before the drinker is aware the 
craving for intoxicants is established and there de- 
velops the diseased condition of mind and body which 
grows steadily worse as the use of liquor is persisted 
in. Some few there are who really can take one or 
two daily drinks and never exceed that limit, but their 
numbers are comparatively so small that their example 
cannot be considered as a criterion of what is usual 
in moderate drinking. 

The Constant Drinkers 

In the class of Constant Drinkers may be placed 
all those who are in the habit of using intoxicants 
daily, or so frequently as to make it a matter of com- 
mon practice. The amount of drink consumed each 
day may be only a glass or two or it may be a quantity 
sufficient to partially or wholly intoxicate. It embraces 
all who "feel the need" of a drink to fit them for their 
daily occupations, and who have a "desire" and "crav- 
ing" for alcoholic stimulant, be the amount required 
much or little. With some of this class a drink before 
meals or one at night may be all that is used; with 
others, whenever the efifect of a previous drink ceases 
to be felt there arises the thought "a little drop would 
taste fine and do me lots of good," and this idea con- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 49 

stantly presented to the mind leads to almost con- 
tinuous indulgence. 

Because of the regularity of his drinking, the 
body of the constant drinker has no chance to eliminate 
the alcoholic poison and thus, partially at least, recu- 
perate from its effects. His various organs become so 
used to functionating under the stimulus of alcohol 
that they grow dependent upon it. Deprive them of 
their excitant and they show their resentment by a 
long train of disagreeable sensations and disordered 
functions. From this comes the so-called "liquor 
craving" which is only satisfied by more liquor to 
restore what to him seems the "normal" condition. 
The constant drinker keeps his body "pickled in alco- 
hol," as it were, and therefore degenerative and dis- 
ease processes take place more rapidly with him than 
with the other classes. 

In certain localities and among some people there 
is a rather common belief that a moderate use of 
intoxicants tends to ward off sickness and prolong 
life. This idea is false as no alcoholic drink of any 
kind or in any quantity will prevent disease or increase 
the probabilities of reaching a ripe old age. The 
tendency is exactly the other way. A preponderance 
of evidence goes to show that moderate drinkers 
usually develop some chronic ailment which owes its 
origin and continuance to alcohol and which carries 
them off before their time. 

It is very difficult to convince a moderate constant 
drinker that he has passed the safety limit. If such 
a one is told that he is really an inebriate and in need 
of medical treatment he is almost certain to deny the 
fact. He at once becomes indignant and emphatically 
declares that he can stop whenever he desires. Under 
the influence of some powerful emotion, some strong 



50 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

suggestion or other forceful cause he may stop drink- 
ing for a short period, but he is almost certain to begin 
again. The test as to whether he can stop at will or 
not is to have him leave liquor absolutely alone for 
a period of one month. 
The If during this time of total abstinence he does 

Test of not in the least miss the stimulants ; if his nerves 
Safety. are steady and his brain active ; if all his bodily 
functions are regular and produce no discomfort, then 
he has not yet contracted the disease. On the other 
hand, if he finds, as is usually the case, that during 
this time there seems to be something lacking, that 
he is restless and not right up to the notch in many 
ways, then he can rest assured that he is already a 
victim of inebriety. He differs only in degree from 
the poor "down and outer" whom he perhaps may 
pity, perchance condemn, and this difference in degree 
will rapidly disappear with continued indulgence. 

I do not want to "preach" nor do I want to 
moralize, but from years of experience in treating 
inebriety let me just say Mr. Moderate Drinker that 
if you think that you are perfect master of your appe- 
tite and are free from alcoholic enthrallment, try the 
above simple test. Try total abstinence from liquor for 
the period of only thirty days. Don't boast that liquor 
is not harming you until you have put yourself to 
proof. Don't condemn some poor chap because he 
cannot resist, until you try it for yourself. You may 
be disagreeably surprised to find that you are not so 
strong or possessed of such will-power as you had 
fondly imagined. If you do pass the test successfully, 
then never touch liquor again. It is bound to get you 
in the end. No man ever beat King Alcohol at his 
own game and don't foolishly imagine that you will 
be an exception to the rule. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 51 

The Periodical Drinkers 

This division comprises a rather numerous class 
of drinkers who, after a period of perfect sobriety, 
suddenly "go on a spree" which may last a day, a week 
or even several weeks, they then "sober up" and be- 
come perfectly temperate until the next outbreak. The 
sober periods may be anywhere from a month to a 
year in duration, with a tendency to constantly shorten, 
while the sprees become more frequent and longer. 
In this connection I may say that one who gets drunk 
every week, or every month, "on pay day," or "when- 
ever he goes to town," is not properly to be considered 
a periodic drinker. He is really a constant drinker 
and the only reason for his abstinence is lack of money 
or opportunity for indulgence. 

Between attacks the periodic drinker seems to 
have no desire whatever for drink, very often he can- 
not bear the smell of it and may take a violent dislike 
to those who use it. Why he should enjoy complete 
freedom from the craving during his sober periods 
is not understood, and while there are many theories 
which attempt to account for it, no satisfactory ex- 
planation has ever been given. The drinker himself 
usually claims that he refrains through "will power" 
and though this explanation has no foundation in fact 
yet it is often accepted by his friends. 
The Symptoms Careful study has shown conclusively 
Which Precede that these periodical attacks of the drink 
a Spree. craving are not under the control of the 

patient's will. In many instances they are preceded 
by symptoms which foretell the coming outbreak. The 
significance of these premonitory signs may not be 
understood by the patient himself, and again he does 
know what they mean and may try to conceal them 
from others. There is often a loss of appetite, ner- 



52 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

vousness, irritability, restlessness and an inability to 
stick to his work. Oftentimes he starts to work at 
high pressure, with long hours and great bodily and 
mental fatigue. Again he may be depressed and 
melancholy, or worried and anxious about himself, his 
business or family. These and other symptoms may 
precede the drink outbreak by several days. Then 
comes the attack, which lasts a variable length of time, 
then another period of sobriety and freedom from all 
craving for intoxicants. 

With some periodics the attacks seem to occur at 
regular intervals, with others they are very irregular 
and uncertain. Some attacks occur only under special 
circumstances, as at reunions, celebrations, holidays 
and the like, others under certain weather conditions. 
The cause of this irresistible impulse to drink has not 
been as yet satisfactorily worked out, though un- 
doubtedly it is a convulsive explosion of nerve energy 
and very much akin to an epileptic seizure. The sprees 
of the periodic drinker usually last until he has 
thoroughly saturated his system with alcohol and in- 
flamed his stomach so that liquor nauseates him and 
the idea of drink becomes repugnant. He then gets 
the idea that he wants to reform and informs his 
friends that he has decided to stop drinking, which he 
does until the next outbreak. 

There is a vast difference in the character and 
conduct of the periodic drinker during his periods of 
sobriety and while drinking. When sober he may be 
kind, considerate, loving and lovable, a good business 
man, cleanly in habits, of irreproachable honesty and 
morality. While drinking he often is just the opposite, 
losing all sense of honor and shame, becoming coarse, 
vulgar and profane. He has no pride of personal 
appearance and all sense of duty to family and friends 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 53 

is forgotten. He commits excesses of all kinds while 
drunk which are abhorrent to him while sober. He 
commonly undergoes a regular Dr. Jekyll and Mr. 
Hyde change of personality. 
The Dipsomaniacs are to be found among all classes 

Dipso- of drinkers, but more often than not they are 
maniac, periodicals, and fortunately their numbers are 
comparatively few. Drinkers of this type become 
obsessed with an uncontrollable mania for drink and 
when under its influence they show symptoms of 
marked mental excitement and brain disturbance. 
They become to all intents and purposes insane, with 
all a maniac's wild thoughts and impulses. Some 
authorities contend that it is a grave question whether 
or not drinkers of this type do not border close upon 
insanity even when sober, and that drink but intensi- 
fies their symptoms which would otherwise remain 
unnoticed. 

Certain it is that drink unbalances their mental 
machinery to an extent that makes them extremely 
dangerous. As patients they are hard to handle and 
difficult to treat. While I do not advocate confine- 
ment in treating ordinary cases of inebriety yet with 
a dipsomaniac such measures may be necessary. While 
intoxicated every precaution should be taken to pre- 
vent their doing harm to either themselves or others. 
They exhibit marked suicidal or homicidal tendencies 
and the daily press is full of accounts of suicides and 
murders committed by those crazed with drink. This 
loss of life might have been averted if timely curative 
measures had been adopted. 
The Mistaken Idea The absence of a desire to drink 
of the Periodical's on the part of a periodical during 
Will Power. the sober period and his usual claim 

that he stopped by will-power often leads his friends 



54 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

to criticise and condemn his weakness in "yielding to 
temptation." They say, "If you can leave it alone for 
a month you can leave it alone forever/' They feel 
they are right in this assumption and assertion be- 
cause of the statement of the patient himself that he 
has full control of his desires. 

These constant reproaches do the victim more 
harm than good. His friends are sincere in their 
intent to help but their ignorance of the real condi- 
tion and the proper methods of treatment increases the 
trouble instead of benefiting it. Unkindly criticism 
often causes a drinker to say, "Oh, what's the use" 
and to cease his efforts to refrain. When this takes 
place he rapidly becomes a constant drinker and 
usually of the most immoderate type. I have seen 
periodic drinkers who, when they felt the attack com- 
ing on, have put up a tremendous fight against it, a 
fight which would crown them heroes, if made in 
some other cause. When they lost they received only 
abuse instead of the help they craved and required. 

If you have never known the irresistible impulse 

to drink to complete intoxication, then God grant you 

never may. But, because you are free and full master 

of yourself, do not criticise and condemn another who 

is not so blessed. Seek to give real help instead. I 

hope to show you ways and means for extending the 

practical aid he needs and remember even a slender 

rope thrown to a man already in quicksand is of far 

more value to him than all the advice you might give 

on how he could have avoided his danger. 

A Word to D° n °t cease for one moment your en- 

the Periodical deavors to overcome the drink obsession 

Drinker. whenever it makes itself manifest. Do 

not think that a spree once or twice a year will not 

injure you or that they will not recur with increasing 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 55 

frequency. Take the experience of anyone you know, 
also your own, and you must realize that the desire 
to drink comes oftener and oftener, stronger and 
stronger, while the power to resist grows weaker with 
every indulgence. In a short time the periods of 
sobriety become shorter, the attacks of drunkenness 
longer, until soon there will be an ever present desire 
to drink, with confirmed inebriety as the result. You 
can conquer the desire to drink, conquer it completely 
and forever. You can once more enjoy the feeling 
of perfect power over yourself and your appetites. 
You will be shown just how quickly and easily this 
may be done and it will be left to your own good 
judgment to use the means provided. 

The Voluntary Drinkers 

Let it be understood that drinkers should be 
separated into two great divisions. First, those who 
drink because of an intense and uncontrollable crav- 
ing or desire for alcohol. Second, those who have no 
physical craving whatever but drink a few glasses or 
get drunk just to be "good fellows" or to satisfy some 
caprice or notion. These latter are the voluntary 
drinkers and, having no need or craving for alcohol, 
they can drink or let it alone as fancy dictates. Cases 
of this character are not strictly medical ones, and 
their treatment must be considered more from the 
moral standpoint. Drinkers of this type can be said 
to be addicted to the "vice of drinking" but they are 
not afflicted with the disease of drunkenness. It is not 
the physical but the moral side which is weak or de- 
fective. 

When this distinction between drinkers becomes 
clearly understood the one who is genuinely in need 
of help will sooner obtain it and suffer less from the 



56 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

censure and unjust condemnation of those who mean 
well but who lack the knowledge necessary to render 
effective their well intended efforts at reform. 

I may say that it is very seldom that voluntary 
drinkers remain such. The use of alcohol even in 
small quantities, as before stated, soon establishes the 
craving for more, the ability to leave it alone at will 
is soon lost and one more is added to the list of 
habitues. 
An If you are a purely voluntary drinker it is easy 

Admoni- for you to be absolutely temperate. It is wholly 
tion. a question of your mental attitude. You drink 

because you want to not because you have to. Having 
in mind the fact that sooner or later, and usually soon, 
you will become a regular user of liquor, with an 
established appetite and constant desire for it, an 
inebriate in fact, you should stop while it requires no 
effort. Liquor does you absolutely no good and it 
does an incalculable amount of harm, therefore your 
common sense should tell you to let it alone. You 
wouldn't let a surgeon unsex you or destroy all your 
higher mental faculties and nobler sentiments, as he 
could easily do through surgical interference, and then 
why should you through drink do practically the same 
thing, voluntarily and with your eyes wide open? 



Causes of Drinking 

Were you to ask a thousand drinkers why they 
drank, you would be given in reply almost every reason 
conceivable and the various causes would seem to 
differ with each one questioned. A careful analysis, 
however, will show that you can group all the different 
motives under a very few general heads. The varia- 
tions will then be found to consist not in differences 
in the cause but merely in such slight details as will 
fit each individual's particular circumstances. For 
example, one may say he drinks to help his indiges- 
tion, another for weak lungs, another for intestinal 
trouble, another for nervousness, another for sleepless- 
ness. The reasons are apparently different yet all of 
them come under the general head of drinking to 
relieve some ailment. It is the same with the other 
excuses advanced by different drinkers. Therefore 
only the main groups with an example of each type 
will be given and from these it will be easy for you 
to correctly place any specific case. 

The chief causes to which a drinker may attribute 
his use of intoxicants will usually be found under one 
or more of the following heads: Heredity, Sur- 
roundings and Associates, Disease, Exhaustion, Worry 
and Trouble, Injuries, and Social Customs. These can 
be still further simplified by saying that every man 
drinks from one of three reasons: First, A desire to 
be sociable; Second, To gain relief from some mental 
or physical ailment; Third, To satisfy an established 
craving for intoxicants. To these causes I would add 
another; one which is rarely if ever given and yet is, 
as will be shown, the most powerful of them all. This 
great cause of drinking is Suggestion. 

57 



58 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

The patient may give one reason for his beginning 
to drink and another for his continuing. In addition 
to the reasons given, which may be right or wrong, 
there must always be considered the almost irresistible 
craving for liquor which is so commonly established 
when drinking has been continuous for any length of 
time. This craving is not often given as a provocation 
to drink by the average drinker. In cases of long 
standing, which began with moderation, gradually in- 
creasing to excess, the motives are really excuses by 
which he attempts to deceive himself and justify his 
conduct in the eyes of others. 

As these various "causes" very often give the key 
to the proper method of treatment and cure, which is 
the end sought, I want you to give them some little 
attention, both in your study and in your observation 
of the patient you wish to cure. Note particularly 
what a very important part "Suggestion" plays in 
every phase of this drink question from the very 
beginning on through to the end. 

Heredity 

When we say that the drink craving can be and 
very often is inherited from a father or mother who 
drank, we must understand exactly what is meant by 
an "inherited craving" or being "marked" by a drink- 
ing father or mother. An inherited craving does not 
mean that a child is born with an already established 
desire for any form of alcoholic drink, nor does it 
spontaneously acquire any such desire at any time 
thereafter. The offspring of an alcoholized parent 
does however inherit a weakened power of resistance 
to alcohol and, therefore, after the first drink, is far 
more liable to rapidly acquire the desire and craving 
for the drink than one whose parents were abstainers. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 59 

The children of alcoholics are seldom equal, either 
in mental or physical strength, to those whose parents 
never drank. St. Vitus Dance, Imbecility, Epilepsy 
and various deformities are common in their childhood 
and later in life various forms of nervous disorders 
are apt to develop. These will range from simple 
nervousness, to neurasthenia, hysteria, melancholia, 
and even insanity. In the insanity of drunkards a 
suicidal or homicidal mania is commonly present. 

In treating inebriety I have often had a patient 
say, "Doctor, my father was a very hard drinker, I 
have inherited this craving and I don't think I can 
be cured and therefore I have never sought help but 
am coming to you to see if there is any hope." Let 
me say right here to anyone having a similar idea, that 
there is not only hope but every assurance of obtaining 
a cure and complete freedom from all desire and 
necessity for intoxicants. An inherited tendency to 
drink is no bar to recovery from inebriety. This has 
been demonstrated so fully and so often that in treat- 
ment no great distinction need be made between so- 
called hereditary cases and those with no alcoholism 
in the family history. 

Surroundings and Associates 

Owing to their suggestive force we are all very 
greatly influenced by our surroundings or environ- 
ment. Our own actions and habits are unconsciously 
molded by those with whom we are constantly asso- 
ciated. If their thoughts and practices are elevating 
and progressive, ours will be also, and vice versa. A 
young man who has grown up in a community where 
drunkenness is the rule, rather than the exception, is 
almost certain to become a drunkard himself. All his 
life he has been accustomed to seeing men drink and 



60 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

get drunk and he takes to drinking as a matter of 
course. To him it appears to be the regular order of 
things. 

Poverty is a cause and also an effect of drunken- 
ness. There are those who become so hopelessly dis- 
couraged in their struggle for a mere existence that 
they seek temporary respite in the only way they know 
— drink. They feel that the world holds nothing for 
them and that it does not matter one way or another. 
They feel happy for a time at least and are oblivious 
to what results may follow. 

Association with criminals or others of depraved 
morals is almost sure to result in habitual drunkenness. 
The followers of certain trades and occupations seem 
to be given to drunkenness more than others. "As 
drunk as a sailor" is a time-worn expression to de- 
scribe profound intoxication, as the old time sailors 
the world over were noted for their drinking. "Tell 
me with whom you associate and I'll tell you what you 
are" is a truism based on the fact that we are seldom 
better or worse than our chosen surroundings. 

Disease 

Considering disease as a cause of inebriety we 
may include all cases where alcohol in some form has 
been prescribed by a physician for the relief of an 
ailment, or where the patient has been his own adviser 
and uses liquor for some real or fancied derangement. 
Numerous and strange are the different ills for which 
the patient takes liquor. To his perverted reasoning 
alcohol can be made a universal panacea. I will 
enumerate only some of the more usual ailments as 
the others are simply variations and present no new 
characteristics. 

Heart disease is not only a common result of 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 61 

drunkenness but, strange as it may seem, it is also a 
rather frequent cause of the same. A physician finds 
his patient suffering from some heart lesion and be- 
lieving that the heart requires "stimulating" prescribes 
whiskey or brandy. These are easy for patients to 
secure and not so very difficult for most of them to 
take. The physician seldom goes to the trouble to pre- 
scribe the exact dose or the exact number of doses 
daily, his usual method of prescribing liquor being, 
"When you feel that discomfort or pain just take a 
little whiskey or brandy and you'll be all right," and 
he lets it go at that. 

The patient left to his own devices is very apt to 
take far more than he should. He uses it first to 
relieve, then to prevent an attack. He soon begins to 
think that if a little is good, more is better, and acts 
accordingly. Before he realizes it he is using liquor 
not cautiously as a poisonous drug should be used but 
as a beverage. 

If such a one be questioned about his drinking he 
at once exclaims, "My doctor ordered me to drink.. 
He says I must have it as it is just what is required 
for my weak heart." Now the probabilities are that 
the doctor never dreamed that he would make a drunk- 
ard out of his patient, but that is just what is too 
often done by carelessly prescribing any form of 
alcohol.. Moreover the patient feels justified in drink- 
ing to excess because, as he claims, "His doctor told 
him to." 

Dyspepsia or indigestion is another ailment for 
which some form of liquor is commonly used. A little 
"appetizer" in the morning and another before each 
meal for the stomach's sake and then a few between 
meals to aid digestion. A true case of indigestion is 
made worse by alcohol, though its narcotic or nerve 



62 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

stupefying action leads the sufferer to believe that he 
is obtaining actual benefit through its use. Because 
of this temporary abatement of distress it is difficult 
to convince a drinker that it is the whiskey which is 
prolonging and increasing his trouble every day and 
making it more difficult to cure. 

Gin is often used, as a kidney remedy when in 
truth it is a strong irritant; brandy for "weak lungs" 
is another wide-spread fallacy; a drink of whiskey to 
promote sleep, a "night cap" so-called, is in common 
use ; whiskey and quinine for a cold is a time honored 
excuse for a spree. A drink to ease a "bowel com- 
plaint" is yet another means by which the drink habit 
is acquired, and I might go on naming nearly all the 
ills that flesh is heir to, as contributing causes of 
inebriety. 

The great danger in using any form of alcohol 
for the relief of ills or ailments is the almost certain 
acquirement of inebriety. This danger is seldom 
thought of by either the physician or patient but thou- 
sands of unfortunate cases attest the ever present peril. 
Alcohol by its narcotic or paralyzing effects does 
afford a temporary relief in some few ailments, but 
it never yet has effected a cure. The user thinks he 
is getting actual benefit and takes more and more. He 
awakens to find that he has become enslaved by an 
overwhelming craving for drink and instead of being 
freed of the original trouble he has added to it one 
that is far worse. 

If the physician who is given lightly to prescrib- 
ing whiskey for this, that, or the other thing should 
take the trouble to ascertain the final outcome, I be- 
lieve there would be an immediate change in his 
methods. I am certain that no man would knowingly 
make a drunkard of another, and yet this is exactly 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 63 

what is accomplished by the well meaning but thought- 
less one who advises whiskey as a cure for sickness. 
For any ailment that alcohol relieves there are a dozen 
remedies that are far better, so lack of other curative 
means is no excuse for its continuance as medicine. 
As a remedial agent whiskey has a place in only two 
pharmacopoeias of the world — Greece and the United 
States. This is proof that it is not a medicine. 

Nervous and Physical Exhaustion 

While exhaustion might properly come under the 
head of "Diseases" yet it is best to make specific men- 
tion of it as a very common cause of drinking. We 
are living in an age of high pressure, both mental and 
physical. There is a constant endeavor on the part 
of the ambitious to out-do and outstrip each rival in 
the race for wealth or position, and to gain as quickly 
as possible the particular brand of success they most 
desire. This effort is made at the expense of a heavy 
drain upon the mental and physical forces of the body 
and, to recuperate or gain additional force, recourse 
is had to alcoholic stimulant. 

As the first effects of alcohol are apparently 
stimulating, the one who resorts to alcohol as a means 
of physical and psychical rejuvenation finds that a 
drink does seem to give him the assistance desired. 
The depressant effects soon follow, however, and the 
condition is then worse than it was at first. To offset 
this more liquor is taken, and a continual round of 
exaltation and depression is begun, with the periods 
of depression growing longer and more profound, and 
the stimulating effect becoming more brief and transi- 
tory. By this time the system makes a positive demand 
for alcohol and refuses to be denied. The drinker 
who began by choice to use a moderate amount, for 



64 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

the purpose of doing more and better work, now finds 
that he must use it in considerable amounts if he is 
to do any work at all. It matters not whether he 
labors with his head or his hands, both the quantity 
and quality of his output soon run below what they 
were before he resorted to liquor to increase his 
stamina. 

When this age of strenuosity has driven him to 
the limit of his capacities, it is not at all to be wondered 
at that a man should resort to alcoholics for an addi- 
tional supply of energy or force. And inasmuch as he 
is at first afforded a delusive aid, it is easy to under- 
stand why he seeks help again and again from the 
same source whenever he feels the real or supposed 
need for increased strength, until the time comes when 
the appetite for drink is established and he is no longer 
his own master. 

You often hear it said of a constant drinker who 
has lost his place in society and the business world: 
"He was such a fine man before he drank." "He was 
a splendid business man before he began to drink so 
hard." "There wasn't a better worker or one who 
worked as hard anywhere around here until drink got 
the best of him." His former associates think him guilty 
of vicious conduct and often believe he deliberately 
chose to ruin his business ability or his skill as a me- 
chanic that he might spend his days in drunkenness. 
Seldom do they understand that his endeavor to work 
longer and harder was the cause of his undoing. His 
attempt to whip up a tired body and brain with an alco- 
holic lash was made with the best of intentions but it 
resulted, as all such attempts must, in quickly relegat- 
ing him to the ranks of the down and out. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 65 

Worry and Trouble 

Worry and trouble over business and family 
affairs, or perhaps his own personal concerns, is often 
given by a drinker as his reason for indulgence. He 
seeks solace in drink from any one of a thousand 
annoyances which may occur in the course of his busi- 
ness or social relations. After one or two experiences 
he soon grows into the habit of drowning his troubles 
in the glass, on any and all occasions. Many inebriates 
can point definitely to some great crisis, some sorrow, 
business reverse or shock which an unstable mental 
and nervous organization was unable to withstand and 
recourse was had to alcohol to carry them through 
the time of stress. The crisis once passed there was 
a natural nervous depression on account of relaxation 
of tension and again alcohol in some form was used 
to bring them up to normal, with the ultimate result of 
establishing the craving and the feeling that alcohol 
in some form was an absolute necessity. 
Injuries 

Rather frequently, when taking the history of a 
hard drinker, one finds that the beginning of his ex- 
cesses dates from his recovery from some injury. 
Such an injury is usually of the head but may be a 
serious one in another part of the body. Time and 
time again the physician is told by some one of the 
family: "Doctor, he was all right up to the time he 
was hurt and ever since that it seems he just can't 
stop drinking." The injury may have apparently no 
other bad effect and the patient appears normal in 
every way. 

Just how or why traumatism causes a craving for 
alcohol is not known. The shock certainly throws the 
mental machinery out of balance in some degree, and 
the evidence of this is seen in the patient's excessive 



66 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

drinking, when before, he was a total abstainer or 
at most a very moderate drinker. It will be unneces- 
sary to cite specific instances of the effects of trauma, 
it only being necessary for our purpose to know that 
severe injury as a cause must be borne in mind when 
endeavoring to ascertain the reason for inebriety in 
any given case. 

Social Customs 

The practice of "treating," which is very much 
an American institution, is responsible for drunken- 
ness to a very large degree. It is a very effective 
though a highly destructive form of suggestion. A 
few friends chance to meet, none of them having any 
desire or thought of drinking, when one of them, 
struck by a spirit of hospitality and sociability, sug- 
gests — "Let's go and have a little something." The 
suggestion is accepted and acted upon. One drink is 
had, then one of the others feels that it is incumbent 
on him to buy "another round"; another says "Now 
have one on me"; the barkeeper's friendly, "Well, 
gentlemen, have one with the house" is never refused, 
and soon there are several cases of complete intoxica- 
tion, all due to the social custom of "treating." 

Were it possible to enforce a law which would 
prevent "treating" in any manner or form and make 
every man pay only for his own drinks, it would most 
certainly result in a surprising decrease in the con- 
sumption of liquor and a corresponding lessening of 
drunkenness. Man is by instinct a social ceature and 
easily influenced by the attitude and actions of others. 
This is exemplified time and time again by the drinker 
who returns home in a state of complete intoxication 
and explains his condition by saying, "Well I went in 
a saloon to get just one glass of beer, but I met Tom, 
Dick and Harry and they asked me to have a drink 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 6T 

with them and then I bought a round and someone 
else bought and before I knew it I had so much I for- 
got all about my promise to come home." If you are 
a drinking man you have told this same tale yourself 
or you have heard it told so often that it seems like 
an old friend. 

The practice of serving wines or liquors at dinners 
or social gatherings is another fr&itful source of the 
drink appetite. Many seem to think that a meal can- 
not be eaten without first partaking of a cocktail or 
having beer or wine with it. When confronted with 
this custom young people, who have never taken a 
drink, hesitate to refuse through fear of being 
thought prudish, odd or of offending their host, and 
many can trace their appetite for drink to this begin- 
ning. Knowing this, never urge anyone to take a drink 
if he once refuses. Better still, never under any cir- 
cumstance ask another to drink. This applies with 
special emphasis when your guest has never taken 
anything intoxicating or where it is known that he is 
trying to stop the use of liquor. Play fair, give him 
the same chance you would want if conditions were 
reversed. 

Suggestion the Great Cause of Drinking 

The -first drink is always the result of a sugges- 
tion which comes either directly from some one else 
or an "auto-suggestion" coming from within. If you 
have your own experience to go by and can recall the 
occasion of "your first drink," you will remember that 
it was taken because some one "suggested" it, or your 
own curiosity "suggested" it to yourself. Perhaps it 
was when you were wet and chilled and someone said : 
"Feel cold and miserable? A little drink would do 
you good. Here, drink this, it will warm you up." 



68 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Or you might have been in a crowd which was drink- 
ing and upon your refusal to join them you heard: 
"Come on, be a good fellow with the rest, take a little 
drink. Don't be a piker and quitter, stick along with 
us and have a good time." Again that first drink 
might have been at a social gathering where you were 
told: "Everybody drinks and you don't want to seem 
odd or old fashioned, just take a few sips for polite- 
ness sake and to show consideration for your hostess." 
There might have been some variation in the circum- 
stances and the words used, but the suggestion was 
there and you followed it. 

It might, however, have been "auto-suggestion" 
coming from yourself which caused you to take your 
first glass. You wanted to find out for yourself 
whether what you had heard of drink — either good or 
bad — was really true. It was the auto-suggestion of 
curiosity and it probably began "I wonder what beer 
tastes like." "I wonder what a drink of whiskey 
would do." "I don't feel very well; I think a little 
drink would do me good." "I believe I'll just try it 
once ; once can't hurt me a bit and no one can ever tell." 
This line of thought was bound to result in that first 
drink being taken. If that same line of thought be 
persisted in or the same character of suggestion be 
received from others there is absolute certainty that 
the first drink will be followed by others and that 
drunkenness and inebriety will follow. 

So great is the power of suggestion that I believe 
it would not be at all out of the way to say that, in 
one form or another, suggestion is the one true cause 
of drinking. All other reasons which are advanced 
being simply descriptive of the form in which the 
actual drink impelling idea is given. 

A minute analysis of the various given causes of 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 69 

drinking will show that the "Law of Suggestion" is 
the impelling force behind them all. Through sug- 
gestion the first drink was taken; because of sugges- 
tion the practice of drinking was formed and con- 
tinued. Furthermore we will learn that one of the 
most potent means for restoring a drinker to a condi- 
tion of complete and permanent sobriety is suggestion, 
scientifically employed. An exception to the above gen- 
eral rule must be made in such cases where the men- 
tality of the drinker is of such a low order as to 
preclude the possibility of suggestion's correct use. 

Paradoxical as it may seem, suggestion is at once 
a cause and a cure for inebriety. For this reason and 
because I expect to show you how to use suggestion, 
with all its wonderful influence, I want you to study 
the drinker's beliefs regarding the effects of liquor 
upon himself and his reasons for drinking. The 
various types of drinkers reason along the same lines 
and knowing their trend of thought it becomes a com- 
paratively easy matter to outline the correct psycho- 
logical or mental treatment which should accompany 
the physical or bodily treatment. A thorough explana- 
tion of suggestion and its relation to inebriety will be 
given in other chapters, where you will learn how it 
operates and how to use it. 



Up to the present we have confined ourselves 
rather closely to the effects of inebriety upon the 
drinker himself but unfortunately its influence extends 
far beyond him. His family, friends, business asso- 
ciates and the very nation itself is affected by his 
drinking. Therefore a complete presentation of the 
case necessitates the consideration of inebriety from 
the broad standpoint of its effects on society and the 
nation, which will be done in the next chapter. 



Effects of Drunkenness on Society 
and the Nation 

Everyone knows that drunkenness is demoralizing 
and destructive to the individual but its appalling 
effect, considered nationally, but few have as yet real- 
ized. For the purpose of making you fully familiar 
with the facts I quote portions of the speech of the 
Hon. Richmond P. Hobson, made before the National 
House of Representatives at Washington, D. C, on 
February 2d, 1911. The full speech can be obtained 
by writing the Congressional Librarian at Washington 
and asking for Bulletin 1593-10167: 

THE GREAT DESTROYER 

From the Speech of the Hon. Richmond P. Hobson 
Before the House of Representatives 

Alcohol History is a record of a sad procession of 
in History, world tragedies. Nations and empires in turn 
have risen to greatness only to fall. Before the death- 
blow was struck from without the evidence shows in 
every case the ravages of a titanic destroyer within, 
under whose operations the vitality and strength of 
the nation were submerged in a general degeneracy. 
For centuries the world's philosophers and his- 
torians have looked on appalled, overwhelmed. Only 
in the last few years has science taken up the question. 
Following her patient, rigid methods, under which 
nature and life have slowly yielded up their secrets, 
science has at last cleared up the mystery and identi- 
fied the great destroyer as alcoholic poisoning. 

70 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 71 

The Discovery The discovery, like most great discov- 
That Alcohol eries, came about almost by accident. 
Destroys Men. During the Boer war it was found that 
the average Englishman did not measure up to the 
standards of recruiting and the average soldier in the 
field manifested a low plane of vitality and endurance. 
Parliament, alarmed by the disastrous consequences, 
instituted an investigation. The commission appointed 
brought in a finding that alcoholic poisoning was the 
great cause of the national degeneracy. The investiga- 
tions of the commission have been supplanted by in- 
vestigations of scientific bodies and individual scient- 
ists, all arriving at the same conclusion. As a conse- 
quence, the British Government has placarded the 
streets of a hundred cities with billboards setting forth 
the destructive and degenerating nature of alcohol and 
appealing to the people in the name of the nation to 
desist from drinking alcoholic beverages. Under 
efforts directed by the government the British army 
is fast becoming an army of total abstainers. 

The governments of continental Europe followed 
the lead of the British Government. The French 
Government has placarded France with appeals to the 
people, attributing the decline of the birth rate and 
increase in the death rate to the widespread use of 
alcoholic beverages. The experience of the German 
Government has been the same. The German Em- 
peror has clearly stated that leadership in war and in 
peace will be held by the nation that roots out alcohol. 
He has undertaken to eliminate even the drinking of 
beer, so far as possible, from the German army and 
navy. 

In the summer of 1909 an international conference 
on alcoholism was held in London, to which most of 
the great nations sent scientific men or delegates. 



72 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Comparing the results of investigation made in all 

parts of the world, finding that these results agreed, 

representative medical leaders of the conference drew 

up a report in the form of a statement defining the 

nature of alcohol, as follows: 

«pjj e Exact laboratory, clinical, and pathological 

Nature research has demonstrated that alcohol is a 

of Alcohol, dehydrating, protoplasmic poison, and its use 

as a beverage is destructive and degenerating to the 

human organism. Its effect upon the cells and tissues 

of the body are depressive, narcotic, and anaesthetic. 

Therefore, therapeutically, its use should be limited 

and restricted in the same way as the use of other 

poisonous drugs. 

It is to be noted that the investigation has been 
conclusive. The question has passed beyond the ex- 
perimental stage, beyond the stage of theory, and is a 
demonstration that is final, like the demonstration that 
the world is round and not flat. 

The last word of science, after exact research 
Alcohol a j n a jj t j le domains, is that alcohol is a poison. 
It has been found to be a hydrocarbon of the 
formula C2 H6 O, that is produced by the process of 
fermentation, and is the toxin, or liquid excretion 
or waste product, of the yeast or ferment germ. Ac- 
cording to the universal law of biology that the toxin 
of one form of life is a poison to all forms of life of 
a higher order, alcohol, the toxin of the low yeast 
germ, is a protoplasmic poison to all life, whether 
plant, animal, or man, and to all the living tissues 
and organs. 
Alcohol I* ls necessary to surrender the old idea, 

Has No so widespread, that alcohol in small quanti- 

Food Value, ties has a food value, that its temperate 
use has any benefit. The experience of the railroads 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 73 

has led over 39 great railroads to forbid the use of 
alcoholic beverages among their employees. While the 
men thought they were being fortified, experience 
proved the contrary. Science has supplemented ex- 
perience by actual and accurate measurements. If a 
man drinks one glass of beer, the day on which he 
drinks it his general efficiency will be lowered on an 
average of 8 per cent. If he takes three glasses of 
beer a day, or the equivalent in light wine, for 12 days, 
his efficiency at the end of the 12 days will be lowered 
from 25 per cent to 40 per cent, depending upon the 
temperament of the man and the nature of the work. 
In doing mathematical work, like bookkeeping, the loss 
of efficiency goes above the 40 per cent limit; in 
memorizing the loss goes up as high as 70 per cent. 
Thus the most moderate and temperate drinking is 
harmful. No matter in what quantity taken alcohol 
remains always a poison. 
Alcohol a ^ n lik e manner it is necessary to sur- 

Narcotic, Not render the old idea that alcohol is a stimu- 
a Stimulant. lant and has medicinal value as such, for 
it has been found to be a narcotic. What is thought 
to be stimulation is in reality a condition where the 
higher centers of co-ordination and control are more 
affected by the narcotic and, under the paralytic effect, 
turn loose the lower activities. The real effect 
throughout is depressive, and all the ideas of medicinal 
value attaching to alcohol must be abandoned. 
Alcohol Not The old idea that alcohol is good for those 
an Aid in threatened with lung trouble must be aban- 
Consumption. doned. Accurate records show that deaths 
from lung trouble are directly in proportion to the 
average amount of alcohol consumed. In one province 
of France, where the consumption of alcohol is 12.5 
liters per capita per year, the deaths from consump- 



74 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

tion are 32.8 per 10,000 per year, while in a similar 
province, where the consumption of alcohol is 36.4 
liters per capita, the deaths from consumption are 
109.8 per 10,000. With regard to drinking alcoholic 
beverages, what applies to consumption applies to 
pneumonia and other diseases of the lungs, like grippe, 
pleurisy, colds, and the like. What applies to the 
diseases of the lungs applies in a general way to the 
diseases of the stomach and intestines, diseases of the 
kidneys and bladder, diseases of the liver, diseases of 
the heart and blood vessels, diseases of the nervous 
system and the brain, diseases of the blood, diseases 
of the bones, muscles and tissues. 
Alcohol the The alcoholic toxin not only has a poison- 
Cause of ing effect of its own in every case, but in 
Disease, addition, through lowered vitality, the 

organs and tissues are opened to attack from other 
sources. The results can be illustrated by taking the 
effect of alcohol on the white blood corpuscles, the 
wonderful standing army of the system, whose organ- 
ized hosts, millions strong, attack and destroy the 
hordes of disease germs of all kinds that are con- 
stantly entering the system through the air we breathe, 
the food and drink, and through abrasions of the skin. 
These disease germs, seeking a lodgment, germs of 
tuberculosis usually in the lungs, germs of typhoid in 
the intestines, each kind in its favorite organs or tis- 
sues, are constantly under assault from the armies of 
the corpuscles. If the latter win from the outset the 
germs are thrown off. If the germs win at first they 
get a lodgment and multiply, and the person contracts 
the diseases. If by repeated assaults the corpuscles 
finally win, the patient recovers. If the multiplying 
hordes of germs win, the patient dies. Nearly all the 
diseases of mankind and nearly all the deaths hang 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 75 

upon the vitality and vigor of the white blood cor- 
puscles. 
One Drink Makes Under the microscope it was found 
the White Blood that even a moderate drink of alco- 
Corpuscles Drunk, holic beverage passing quickly into the 
blood paralyzes the white blood corpuscles. They be- 
have like drunken men. In pursuit they can not catch 
the disease germs. In conflict they can not hold the 
disease germs for devouring, and they can not operate 
in great phalanxes, as they do when sober, against 
such powerful germs as those of consumption. 

Every time a man takes a drink of alcoholic 
beverage he lays himself open for a time to contract- 
ing diseases. Every time a man takes a drink he puts 
his life in peril. No wonder the mortality statistics 
show, as they do, that a total abstainer has nearly 
twice the security and hold on life that the average 
drinker has and about three times the hold of heavy 
drinkers and those engaged in the liquor traffic. 

If the drinks are repeated, the microscope shows 
that the fighting powers of the white blood corpuscles 
are permanently impaired, even when they are not 
actually drunk. This accounts for the lowered vitality 
of regular drinkers, even though temperate. 
The Statistics compiled by insurance companies 

Great show that the death rate for the population 

Destroyer, at large is 1,000 deaths per year out of every 
61,215 of the population, and that the death rate of 
total abstainers is 560 per year out of the same num- 
ber, and for liquor dealers 1,642 deaths per year out 
of the same number. These figures, resulting from 
many millions of cases, can be taken as accurate. 
They show that 440 deaths out of every 1,000 deaths, 
nearly one-half of the deaths that occur, are due to 
alcohol. Applied to this country, over 680,000 deaths 



76 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

per year in continental United States, or over 725,000 

per year in the United States and its possessions. In 

other words, alcohol is killing our people at the rate 

of nearly 2,000 men a day every day in the year. 

Alcohol Ten Thou- The Arm y War College at Wash- 

sand Times More ington made an investigation of 

Destructive Than War. destructiveness of war. Taking all 

the wars of the world, from the Russo-Japanese war 

back to 500 B. C, the War College found that the 

total number of killed and wounded in battle amounts 

to about 2,800,000, of which it is estimated that about 

700,000 were killed and something over 2,000,000 

wounded. 

The comparative figures show the appalling fact 
that alcohol is killing off as many Americans every 
year as all the wars of the world have killed in battle 
in 2,300 years. 

Applied to the whole white race, we find that 
alcohol is killing 3,500,000 white men every year, five 
times as many as have been killed in war in 2,300 
years; so that, stated mathematically, alcohol is ten 
thousand times more destructive than all wars com- 
bined. No wonder the governments investigating the 
subject have found that war has been only a secondary 
cause of national decline, and that alcohol has been 
the real destroyer that has overthrown all the great 
nations of the past and is now undermining the great 
nations of today. 

The figures of the British Government and Eng- 
lish life insurance companies as to the effect of drink- 
ing on longevity are stated as follows : 
Alcohol's Wounded If a young man at the age of 20 is 
Today Are More a total abstainer and remains a total 
Than Six Hundred abstainer, his prospect of life is 44 
Million White Men. years and he will live to the aver age 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 77 

age of 64, but if he is a temperate regular drinker his 
prospect of life will be 31 years and he will live to the 
average age of 51, after losing 13 years out of his life. 
If he is a heavy drinker, his prospect of life is 15 years 
and he will die at the average age of 35, after losing 
29 years out of his life. Conservative estimates place 
the number of confirmed drunkards in the United 
States at something over 1,000,000, of whom 300,000 
die every year; the heavy drinkers at over 4,000,000; 
and temperate regular drinkers at over 20,000,000. A 
soldier wounded in battle and losing 10 years of his 
life as a consequence would be classed as seriously 
wounded. The confirmed drunkards and heavy 
drinkers together, 5,000,000 in number, must be looked 
upon as mortally wounded and the temperate regular 
drinkers as seriously wounded, making a total of over 
25,000,000 Americans wounded by alcohol today, more 
than ten times as many as wounded in all the battles 
of the world since the dawn of history. The esti- 
mates for the white race make over 125,000,000 white 
men today wounded by alcohol. 

If a great military power were to declare war on 

unprepared America today every patriotic heart would 

be filled with anxiety. I know the full significance of 

war, especially when a nation is unprepared. But if 

I had the choice of having alcohol continue its deadly 

ravages with the Nation at peace or of having it wiped 

off the face of the land with a declaration of war by 

all the nations of the earth, I would not hesitate for 

a moment ; I would take sober, undegenerate America 

and face the combined world in arms. 

T jj e If a peaceable red man is subjected to the 

Curse of regular use of alcoholic beverage, he will 

All Races, speedily be put back to the plane of the 

savage. The government long since recognized this 



78 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

and absolutely prohibits the introduction of alcoholic 
beverage into an Indian reservation. If a negro takes 
up a regular use of alcoholic beverage, in a short time 
he will degenerate to the level of the cannibal. 

No matter how high the stage of evolution, the 
result is the same. A white man with great self- 
control, considerate, tender-hearted, who would not 
willingly harm an insect, will be degenerated by regu- 
lar use of alcoholic beverage to the point where he 
will strike with a dagger or fire a shot to kill with 
little or no provocation. 
The Overshadowing Though at first a tender, loving hus- 
Cause of Crime, band and parent, he will degenerate 
Pauperism and to the point where he will be cruel 

Insanity. to his own flesh and blood. It is con- 

servatively estimated that 95 per cent of all the acts 
and crimes of violence committed in civilized com- 
munities are the direct result of men being put down 
by alcohol toward a plane of savagery. The degen- 
erating process strikes at the integrity of the reason 
and is the chief cause of idiocy and insanity. It wipes 
out self-control, self-respect, the sense of honor, the 
moral sense, and produces the bulk of tramps, paupers, 
vagabonds. 
Defies * n ever y living thing there is the evolu- 

Nature and tionary impulse to rise and progress. In 
Nature's God. the human family man is not changed 
much in his physical nature, but is evolving chiefly in 
his nervous system, building up those delicate centers 
of the brain upon whose activities rest the moral 
sense. Nature is trying to produce men of high char- 
acter, a race of true, noble men. Alcoholic beverages, 
even in moderation, reverse the processes of nature 
and set back the purposes of creation. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 79 

Blights Nature is pitiless when her processes are 

the Progeny reversed. She abhors degeneracy and will 
of Man. no t tolerate its perpetuation. With parents 

properly mated and undegenerated the offspring will 
multiply and be higher and nobler in each succeeding 
generation. But woe to the offspring if the parents 
degenerate themselves. Nature will blast the progeny 
and everything associated with its production. 

The same inexorable law holds for man as for 
animals and plants. A scientist having investigated 
more than 800 cases, announces that of children born 
of alcoholic parents, one of every five will be hope- 
lessly insane, one out of three will be hysterical or 
epileptic. More than two-thirds will be degenerate. 
Another scientist located 10 large families in which 
both parents were alcoholic, and in the same localities, 
with other conditions practically the same, 10 large 
families in which both parents were total abstainers. 
Of the 57 children of the alcoholic parents, 10 were 
deformed, 6 were epileptic, 6 were idiotic, 25 were 
nonviable, only 17 per cent were normal, 83 per cent 
being abnormal. Of the 61 children of the total- 
abstaining parents 10.5 per cent only were abnormal, 
and these chiefly backward, while 89.5 per cent were 
absolutely normal. Seventeen per cent were normal 
in the one case and 89.5 per cent in the other case, a 
difference of 72.5 per cent. 
Alcohol Increases the Another scientist after wide in- 
Perils of Childbirth vestigation has found that in only 
and the Danger 1 per cent of cases do accidents 

of Race Suicide. occur j n ma t e rnity to mothers 

where the parents are total abstainers, while 5.25 per 
cent occur where the parents are regular temperate 
drinkers, and 7.32 per cent where the parents are heavy 
drinkers. In the case of total-abstaining parents the 



80 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

deaths in infancy among their children will be 13 per 
cent; in the case of temperate regular drinkers 23 per 
cent, and heavy drinkers 32 per cent. Of the children 
of drinkers 10 per cent will have consumption, of the 
children of total abstainers, only 1.8 per cent. Those 
who drink alcoholic beverage should realize the ter- 
rible price they pay. For even temperate regular 
drinking, they increase over 400 per cent the chances 
of accidents in maternity. They nearly double the 
chances of their children dying in infancy, and they 
undermine the health and normality of those that sur- 
vive. A man may take chances with himself, but if 
he has a spark of nobility in his soul, he will take care 
how he tampers with a deadly poison that will cause 
the helpless little children that he brings into the world 
to be deformed, idiotic, epileptic, insane. 

The Stand- The standpoint of the individual is not the 
point of only standpoint from which this great 

the State. destroyer must be examined. His blight 

is as deadly for society as it is for the individual. We 
must examine him from the standpoint of the state. 
From the standpoint of the state, there is but one 
decision, my countrymen, this great destroyer himself 
must be destroyed. 

The The investigations above show the disease 

Disease to be organic, and chronic. It has been 

Is Organic, running for 3,000 years ; it is grafted upon 
the social and political life of the nations; it grips 
every civilized government in the world — the rulers 
and the ruled, the families of high degree and low 
degree. It is the deepest, most organic disease known 
to the body politic and body social, the root and source 
of nearly all other social and political ills. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 81 

The Treat- For an orgsmic disease the treatment, to be 
ment Must effective, must be organic. What is organic 
Be Organic, treatment ? Who are the organs and tissues 
and cells of the body politic and body social? The 
people themselves. Each citizen may be regarded as 
a cell in the body politic. Any effective cure must 
reach the great multitude of individual citizens. The 
problem resolves itself into two parts — first, to find 
a treatment which, applied to the average individual 
citizen, will cure him ; secondly, to carry this treatment 
down to the multitudes. 
Vpkg The average man is a rational being. If 

Power undegenerated, he shares with other creatures 
of Truth, three elemental attributes — the instinct of self- 
preservation, the impulse to rise and better himself, 
the instinct to protect his progeny. Therefore, being 
rational, the average man can be cured by taking to 
him the truth that alcohol strikes at his life, stops, 
then reverses his evolution and blasts his progeny. 
The problem, therefore is to take the great vital truths 
to the vast multitudes of the people. In the broadest 
sense, it is a question of universal education. 
p ass In the cure of an organic disease, when a cell 

the Cure gets cured it becomes active and passes the 
Along. cure to the next. When a person has come 
into possession of the truth he should never lose an 
opening to pass it on and on, if only in the shortest, 
simplest form, that alcohol destroys, degenerates, and 
blights the progeny; then the question is settled as 
completely as a problem in geometry. 



Note the concluding paragraphs in the above ex- 
tract. Mark well his admonition, "Find a treatment 
which, applied to the average individual citizen, will 
cure him, and carry this treatment down to the multi- 



82 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

tudes." That is the purpose with which this book has 
been written. 

I might go on for pages describing the minute 
effects of drink upon the body; much more could be 
said as to variations in types of drinkers and the 
causes of their indulgence; volumes could be written 
about the heartaches and troubles experienced by a 
drinking man's family — but to what end? If you are 
a drinker, moderate or otherwise, it will avail nothing 
to plead, scold or sermonize and I have no wish or 
intention of so doing. My aim is to tell you enough 
of the proven, scientific truths about drunkenness to 
make you understand and realize that they are truths 
and then let your reason and good common sense 
appeal to you to take such measures as are necessary 
to counteract and get rid of the poisonous effects of 
alcohol, just as you would seek as quickly as possible 
to overcome poisoning from any other drug. 

We might lecture from now to the Day of King- 
dom Come on the ills and evils of drink but we would 
accomplish but little if we only "preached." To get 
results, faith and good works are necessary. Don't 
overlook the fact that they both go together. Either 
is badly crippled or useless without the other. In 
order that you may have faith to carry out the good 
works required drunkenness has been proven to be a 
disease and I propose to show you a method by which 
it can be stopped and cured to stay cured. 

The method, as applied to the home treatment of 
inebriety will be new to a very large majority of 
readers. For this reason I will give considerable 
space to details as I want everyone to thoroughly 
understand and be able to use the method in its en- 
tirety. 



The Law of Suggestion 

A number of references have been made, in 
previous pages, to "Suggestion," and as this force 
plays such a prominent part, both in the cause and 
in the cure of inebriety, it is really necessary to give 
an explanation of what it is and how it operates, be- 
fore the various methods of treatment are discussed. 
The limits of this book necessarily prevent an ex- 
haustive treatise on the subject, but for the practical 
application of Suggestion in the treatment of drunken- 
ness such a treatise is not at all requisite. Therefore 
I shall confine myself to an explanation of the salient 
features and facts without going deep into scientific 
detail. 

Pay special attention to this chapter because the 
knowledge you will gain can be profitably employed 
for the betterment of your business or your physical, 
mental and moral self. No other discovery has given 
us such a clear insight into human nature as has the 
recognition of the "Law of Suggestion" and its con- 
trol of the mind and acts of man. The principles of 
Suggestion are simple and easily comprehended. An 
understanding of them will be amply sufficient for a 
practical "working knowledge" of the law and will 
enable you to intelligently use this great force in the 
successful treatment of either a patient or yourself. 

In the following presentation of fundamental 
psychological facts there will at times appear a lack 
of sequence in their arrangement. This is almost 
unavoidable as the subject does not lend itself to a 
smooth and continuous unfoldment. You cannot, as 
it were, get hold of one end of the string and unwind 

83 



84 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

the explanations as you would a ball of twine. You 
must study each feature and fact by itself, then after 
a very short time you will find that you can fit them 
all together into a perfect whole. If the subject is 
new to you proceed slowly and think over each para- 
graph and page. Your common sense will fully agree 
with every statement made and you will soon under- 
stand and be able to apply the "Law of Suggestion" 
for your own good ends. 

The Two Minds 

And now just a word to prevent the establishment 
of wrong ideas in regard to that most remarkable 
instrument, the human Mind. Do not confuse brain 
with Mind. The brain can be seen, it may be felt, it 
is tangible; that is, it possesses form and substance. 
Mind is a power of the brain. It has neither shape 
nor substance, yet the study of psychology has taught 
us by what forces this power is governed and just how 
it is manifested. It is customary to speak of the Mind 
as though it were of material form, and you must not 
be misled by this into error. The Mind is that which 
perceives, remembers, thinks, feels, desires, reasons 
and wills. 

Let us now go a little further, and, as a prelimin- 
ary to an understanding of the process by which Sug- 
gestion exerts its influence, study the theory of man's 
dual mentality. By dual mentality is meant that every 
human being has either two minds or that the mind 
has two distinct aspects or states. Recent discoveries 
indicate that the one mind possesses two different 
states or characters rather than that there are two 
minds. The practical result is, however, that of two 
separate minds, so it is immaterial whether we call 
the subconscious phenomena the acts of a subcon- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 85 

scious mind or say they are due to the unconscious 
action of the nervous system. But in the study of the 
mind a practical distinction is made between its two 
aspects and for convenience one is designated as the 
conscious mind and the other as the subconscious. As 
a rule, the two minds work together, with no dividing 
line between them, and we feel there is but one per- 
sonality.* 

The conscious mind is the one which we use 
knowingly. It forms conceptions, compares ideas, 
evolves judgments and it reasons; it directs our every 
conscious and volitional act. It receives impressions 
or suggestions consciously, through the medium of the 
five senses, viz. : sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch. 
It also receives and acts upon impressions or sugges- 
tions received from the subconscious mind. Reading, 
writing, talking, logical thinking, the performance of 
tasks requiring our active attention are all directed by 
conscious mind. 

Only a little reflection, however, is required to 
show you that but a very small part of our mental and 
physical activities are consciously carried out. We go 
through our day's work without a break although we 
know that a good part of it is not consciously and 
deliberately directed. We finish accustomed tasks auto- 
matically and, as is often said, "without giving them a 
thought." We perform such acts as walking and 
eating, riding and talking, carrying on conversations, 
and even thinking, in a manner largely unconscious. 
All these acts are directed by that phase of the mind 
designated as the subconscious. 

The subconscious mind also governs the appar- 
ently automatic bodily functions, such as the beating 



*The "cons clous'* and "subconscious" phases of the mind have 
been designated by some authors as "primary and secondary con- 
sciousness," and also as the "objective and subjective mind." 



86 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

of your heart, your ordinary breathing, the digestion 
of food, and all the other innumerable actions and 
processes which are constantly going on within you. 
During sleep the subconscious mind stands guard and 
all goes on as during our waking hours. It controls 
the somnambulist, the hypnotized subject and the per- 
son in a state of trance. By means of anesthetics you 
can overcome the conscious mind and render it insus- 
ceptible to all external influences ; but not so the sub- 
conscious, which in every normal individual is always 
alert and always active. We could exist for some time 
without the conscious mind, we could not exist at all 
without the subconscious. 

The distinctions between the two minds are pretty 
sharply drawn, and at the same time, the relations be- 
tween them are definitely fixed, though the subcon- 
scious often seems to encroach upon the domain of the 
conscious. As for example, when we first attempt a 
task that is new or strange, we are intensely conscious 
of our every effort. Our movements are slow, awk- 
ward and unskillful. By degrees, as we acquire more 
and more dexterity, we become less and less conscious 
of our movements until they are done unconsciously. 
Thus we perform an act or series of acts so often that 
they become "habitual" and are carried out without an 
effort of will. They are "conscious acts" performed 
"unconsciously" for the reason that the subconscious 
has assumed control and the conscious mind at once 
drops all care and responsibility. Thus it is seen 
that all habits of mind and body are for the most part 
governed by our subconsciousness. 

A difference in the mode of operation of the two 
minds must also be noted. The conscious mind al- 
ways works consciously ; we are always aware of what 
it is doing. It always works by "day-light." This is 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 87 

not true of the subconscious or subjective mind. We 
are conscious only of its results after it is through. 
But we can never be conscious of its relations directly, 
never catch it in the act of working. It never reasons 
"out loud." It works subtly, by intuition. 

Another characteristic of the subconscious mind, 
which you must thoroughly grasp, is this: The sub- 
conscious mind does not reflect nor reason but acts 
with machine-like precision and faithfulness upon 
SUGGESTION. It will accept any suggestion and 
act upon it, provided that such suggestion is not out- 
weighed in power and force by counter or inhibitory 
ones. And provided further that carrying out the 
suggestion will not produce harm to the body. The in- 
stinct of self-preservation is an all powerful, inborn 
suggestion — impression of the subconsciousness and 
any attempt to overcome this instinct by direct sugges- 
tion will be pretty sure to meet with failure. 

The subconscious mind is far more sensitive than 
the conscious. It not only receives every impression 
that comes to the conscious mind but also many of 
which consciousness takes no note. It receives intui- 
tive or instinctive impressions from the minds of 
others and from the judgment and reason of conscious- 
ness. It is the storehouse of every thought we have 
ever had and every act we have ever done. It is mem- 
ory and retains every impression received. Pictures 
of past experiences, of which we have no recollection, 
are stored in the subconsciousness and may exercise an 
influence over us of which we are unconscious. "Many 
minds are moody, morose, melancholy, excitable, irri- 
table, immoral, unbalanced, solely because of the over- 
powering influence of some past experience, which re- 
mains subconsciously in operation after conscious 



88 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

thought on the occurrence has ceased and the person 
has apparently forgotten the incident." 

From the foregoing you now must thoroughly 
grasp the following points : There are two phases of 
mind, conscious and subconscious. The subconscious 
does not reason but acts upon suggestion. The sub- 
conscious controls our habits after they are formed 
and also many habits grow to be such subconsciously. 
The subconsciousness is the seat of fixed ideas and it 
is our fixed ideas which determine our character and 
the general course of all our actions. The subcon- 
scious never forgets an impression, though the con- 
scious mind may be unable to recall it. Long after an 
impression is received and passed out of our conscious- 
ness, the subconscious memory of it may cause us to 
act in a manner for which we can give no logical rea- 
son. The subconscious is never asleep and is always 
on duty. The subconscious exerts a most powerful in- 
fluence over all our conscious acts, and is itself most 
easily persuaded to action by suggestion. 

With this explanation of the workings of the con- 
scious and subconscious aspects of the mind, let us 
take the next step and get an idea of Suggestion. 

What Suggestion Is 

The term Suggestion, in its psychological sense, 
has come into comparatively frequent use only in re- 
cent years. Its meaning, application and mode of op- 
eration are still not generally correctly understood, 
though its results are everywhere noted. Stripped of 
all obscuring phraseology, Suggestion means the giv- 
ing of an IMPRESSION, FEELING, or STIM- 
ULUS to the mind, by something or someone, which 
arouses a THOUGHT, IDEA, or BELIEF, which in 
turn is expressed by ACTION. The initial impulse 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 89 

may be conveyed to the mind by any or all of the five 
senses, or it may come by "auto-suggestion" from 
within oneself, or it may come through the mind of 
another. 

You know how the sight of a photograph, a face, 
or a bit of landscape, will arouse a train of ideas and 
thoughts, which all tend to shape our immediate or 
future actions. The same is true of everything about 
us and with which we come in contact. The books we 
read, the words we hear, the things we see, the odors 
we smell, the objects we touch and even the thoughts 
of our associates, all have their suggestive influence for 
good or ill and as a consequence we are for the most 
part made and molded by this force. 

The reason why Suggestion exerts such a power- 
ful and universal effect is this: Suggestion, as has 
been stated, is an influence which arouses an idea or 
thought. Now, according to a simple psychological 
law, any type of thought persistently presented to and 
entertained by the mind, will soon reach the motor 
tracts of the brain and, in response to the force of 
"cumulative energy" is bound to cause action of some 
kind. It may result in a physical act or it may lead 
to a belief or an emotion. But it must result in a mental 
or physical action of some character. 

Reasoning still further, we find that the action 
produced must be of the same type or character as the 
thought which prompted and instigated it. Like 
begets like is true on the mental plane as on the physi- 
cal. You cannot entertain thoughts of dishonesty and 
remain honest; impure thoughts result in impure ac- 
tions; thoughts of pleasure in drink insure a spree; 
good thoughts produce good actions, and vice versa. 
From this you can understand that a man must first 
think right before he can or will act right. 



90 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Knowing that our acts are the result of our 
thoughts you can now realize that King Solomon, 
thousands of years ago, voiced a tremendous truth 
when he declared "For as he thinketh in his heart, so 
is he." (Proverbs, 23rd-7th.) This is not only good 
biblical doctrine but it is also a physiological fact 
This is true not only of man's moral, but also of his 
physical characteristics. Let a man radically alter his 
thought habits and the transformation it will effect 
in his spiritual and material condition is both rapid and 
astonishing. 

For years it has been known that the mind not 
only controlled our actions, but to a great extent, also 
determined the condition of our health. The results 
of the mind's influence over the body were easily seen 
and therefore not denied, but the manner of its opera- 
Hon not being understood has caused many false theo- 
ries to be put forth to account for the known facts. 

Those having only a meagre understanding of the 
subject are inclined to regard Suggestion, Hypnotism 
and other psychological phenomena as something un- 
canny, mysterious and beyond the power and reach of 
ordinary mortals, or they may perhaps disbelieve en- 
tirely. Others observing seemingly miraculous cures 
without medicines or noting remarkable changes of 
character, from bad to good and from weak to strong, 
have thought it a direct interposition of God himself. 
On this belief have been founded various cults, sci- 
ences and religions, each having as its chief article of 
faith the affirmation of the "Power of Mind over the 
Body," through the intervention of Divine Influence. 

Some go so far as to claim that there are no 
limitations to Mind and what it can accomplish. Others 
say that only the Mind is real and that matter has no 
existence. Many claim that if one has sufficient faith 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 



91 



he can be cured of any disease, because disease does t 
not exist, that it is only a "mental error." 

As a matter of fact there are limitations to the 
mind's power over the body and merely having faith is 
not all that is required to bring about cures. It also is 
true that remarkable cures and changes of character 
do take place and without the use of medicines or other 
physical means, but every variety of "Faith Cure," 
"Mind Cure" or "Cure by Religion" depends for its 
effects and results upon Suggestion. This force is ever 
present and practically is continuous in its operation. 
Far from being supernatural or strange, Suggestion is 
the Universal Law, which exerts the greatest control 
and sway over you and me. It generally works un- 
consciously, but, whether conscious or not, it is the 
most persistent influence in life, the first law of psychic 
order. 

Psychologists are now making practical use of 
the Law of Suggestion and are successfully treating a 
long list of maladies and bad habits by inspiring the f 
right thoughts and establishing the right mental atti- 
tude in the person undergoing treatment. Mental and 
nervous troubles, all functional diseases of the diges- 
tive system, most forms of headaches, irritability of 
temper, insomnia, vicious mental and physical habits, 
are every day being cured by the skillful use of Sug- 
gestion. Its field of usefulness would grow still more 
rapidly if it were more generally known how simple 
and easy it is to use. 

Safeguards on Suggestion 

Knowing that all actions, mental and physical, 
have their origin in thoughts and that thoughts are 
the outcome of the various Suggestions which are j 
constantly received, you can begin to realize why it is 



92 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

that environment and surroundings so greatly influ- 
ence and fix one's character. An individual's charac- 
ter, whether is is good or bad and to what degree, is 
determined by the kind of suggestions which are given 
him and which ones he accepts. From the time man 
reaches the age of reason he is constantly beset with 
suggestions of opposing nature; one species we can 
I call Constructives or those which influence him for 
j advancement and good; another class we may desig- 
nate Destructives whose influence is for deterioration 
and evil. Whichever of these proves the stronger and 
most persistent determines whether the resultant acts 
and general character will be good or be bad. But as 
a protection to the individual and to prevent him from 
acting like a weathercock — shifting his position with 
every new suggestion — Nature has provided a number 
of safeguards against promiscuous or pernicious men- 
tal influence. 

(First among these protections are the faculties of 
reason and judgment which may be exercised for or 
against the acceptance of any suggestion presented to 
the conscious mind. Almost every minute of your 
waking hours you are called upon to make a decision 
as to whether or not you will comply with a sugges- 
tion or thought which "just pops into your head." It 
may take but a fraction of a second to reach a conclu- 
sion and dismiss the thought entirely; again the idea 
may persist in its recurrence and require a positive 
effort to get rid of it. Very often the mind will start 
to argue with itself, as it were, and it will take the 
various suggestions given by the subconsciousness and 
weigh them against each other and then make a deci- 
sion. By thus using reason, judgment and an effort 
of will, we can accept or reject any suggestion which 
is presented to our conscious minds. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 93 

While we cannot absolutely prevent destructive 
thoughts or suggestions from entering our minds, yet \ ^ 
we can refuse to entertain them. Two thoughts of op- ' ' 
posite character cannot be entertained at the same 
time and if we make a practice of giving ourselves a 
"good" thought as soon as a "bad" one presents itself, I 
we will soon crowd out all Destructives and form the 
habit of keeping the mind filled with Constructives. In 
this way we can exercise a great measure of "free 
choice" and can rise above our surrounding influences 
or sink beneath them as we choose. Bear in mind that 
thoughts are things and they produce material results, 
and that the result of right thinking must be right act- 
ing and right living. 

Another protection lies in the fact, that of two op- 
posing suggestions only the more powerful shall be 
acted upon. In this connection it must be understood 
that a comparatively weak suggestion gains strength 
and force by being constantly repeated. It may be 
presented to the mind consciously and subconsciously 
so often that it will prevail even when the mind is sud- 
denly confronted with an almost overwhelming coun- 
ter-suggestion. 

As an example you may take the case of a soldier 
who has never been in battle, but who from the time 
of his enlistment has been admonished that when the 
time came, he must "keep cool" and "stand steady." 
He hears the same thing over and over again from his 
officers and his comrades, but pays but little "con- 
scious" attention at the time because he can see no 
actual need for the advice at the time it is given. How- 
ever his regiment is ordered suddenly to the front and 
he finds himself nervously awaiting the enemy's fire. 
It comes with a crash of thunder, a lightning flash of 
guns and a storm of leaden hail. The great big pow- 



94 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

erf ul suggestion is to drop everything and run. Reason 
and judgment tell him that that is no place for him, 
but the previous weeks of drill and the suggestions 
"stand steady, keep cool" now prove their cumulative 
force and in obedience to them he stands his ground. 
This same thing holds good in the establishment 
of all our habits. The suggestion or thought may be 
only a little weak one at first, but if we let it persist in 
/ the mind it gets a little stronger day by day, then we 
may act upon it "just once," then the once becomes 
twice, then again and again, until soon it has become a 
habit and part of our real selves. It may have been a 
good thought and produces a good habit or it may 
have been otherwise, but that is how habits are formed 
and our lives controlled. 

Auto-Suggestion 

As Auto-Suggestion is the most powerful sugges- 
tion which can be given it will be well to devote some 
little space to an explanation of its meaning, manner 
of employment and the results of its use. Suggestion 
and Auto-Suggestion are parts of the same thing, the 
difference between them is but this : Suggestion is an 
impression given to the mind from a source outside of 
the mind, while Auto-Suggestion is a similar impres- 
sion, or similar influence given by the conscious mind 
to its own subconsciousness. Auto-Suggestion is 
under each individual's control, it is the most powerful 
suggestion to action which can be given and it is also 
the greatest safeguard against any and all kinds of 
Destructive suggestions. For these reasons it is the 
most powerful aid you can have in overcoming a de- 
structive mental or physical habit or in curing your- 
self of different sicknesses and ailments. 



r4 



^ 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 95 

It is through Auto-Suggestion that the great fac- 
ulty of Will is built up. Will means Self Control; and 
that means literally what the phrase indicates — control 
of yourself by your own self. The man who has a 
strong, forceful Will has simply acquired the ability 
to give his subconscious mind such powerful auto- 
suggestions that it enables him to stick to his purpose 
in spite of all obstacles and counter suggestions. 

Auto-Suggestion operates to build up a strong 
Will, clear thinking, all that counts for success, just 
as strongly as it works for better health. The weak 
willed person is the one who cannot say, "I Will." He 
is the person who is blown any way the wind blows, 
whose indecision and lack of backbone place him at the 
mercy of any influence — generally bad — near him. Any 
obstacle overcomes him, any slight excuse will keep 
him from doing what is right, what would make him 
happier and stronger. Weak will is a disease of the 
subconscious mind. The weak willed person lacks the 
clear, decisive ideas that normally are suggested to the 
subconscious mind, and that to the strong willed per- 
son results in firm habits of thinking and acting. 



The foregoing will give you the basic features 
upon which the Law of Suggestion operates, but 
further details will be brought out in succeeding pages 
when we consider the relationship of Suggestion in 
the causation of Inebriety and the employment of this 
seme force in the cure of the disease. 



Suggestion and Drunkenness 

A few pages back it was stated that the "first 
drink" was always the result of a Suggestion and 
further that both periodic and steady drinking were 
greatly influenced if not entirely governed by this same 
agency. Now with your further knowledge of the 
principles of Suggestion let us follow the career of a 
drinker from the first drink, until such time as the 
habit or craving has become firmly established and we 
will observe how the influence of Suggestion is ever 
present and how it dominates the case from beginning 
to end. 

Let us suppose a young man of average intelli- 
gence, in ordinary surroundings and circumstances has 
taken his first drink, either as the result of a sugges- 
tion from someone else or as an auto-suggestion 
(usually curiosity) coming from himself. Upon the 
effects of that first drink greatly depend whether or 
not he will take the second, third or fourth one. Should 
the effects be agreeable, a pleasant impression is made 
upon the mind and recollection sets a pleasureable train 
of ideas in motion every time the drink suggestion is 
presented. Because these ideas are pleasant and the 
past emotions, feelings and sensations are again en- 
joyed in delightful remembrance, the drinker's judg- 
ment and reason may make no objection whatever to 
the next drink, it being taken as a matter of course. 

If the drinker "quits while it is still fun" and 
without having drank sufficient to produce a disagree- 
able degree of depressing after effects, it is almost a 
certainty that the drinking experiment will soon be re- 
peated. The drink suggestion comes to him very often 

96 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 97 

and is allowed to remain, as ordinarily he will not 
prevent himself from enjoying in memory his past 
pleasant experiences. You can readily see that each 
recurrence of this memory image acts as a powerful 
auto-suggestion to renew his past pleasures at the first 
opportunity. 

Just the reverse will be true if the occasion of the 
first drink has been filled with disagreeable sensations 
and experiences, with a sequence of unpleasant memo- 
ries. The suggestion to drink may occur to him just 
the same, but instead of being welcomed it is greeted 
with a feeling of repulsion, because it brings with it 
the recollection of physical and mental discomforts en- 
dured while drinking and which have left such an un- 
pleasant impression that each thought of them is an 
auto-suggestion to leave drink alone. The unpleasant 
consequences of the first spree may leave such a vivid 
and permanent impression that the first will be the last, 
or it may be that while the memory is disagreeable yet 
it is not sufficiently so to counteract the drink sugges- 
tion, when of course, the spree will be sooner or later 
repeated. 

Man is supposed to be governed by his reasoning 
faculties, but as a matter of fact he acts more in ac- 
cordance with his impulses, emotions, sensations and 
desires than he does upon the dictates of his judgment 
and reason. Therefore actions pleasing to us are per- 
formed much more promptly than are those which are 
distasteful or to which we are indifferent. We will 
accept and act upon suggestions promising even tran- 
sitory pleasures and resolutely relegate reason and 
judgment to the background and refuse to let them in- 
terfere. For this reason the remembrances of one spree 
tend to either prevent or to hasten the next. 

The drinker may begin the use of liquor without 



98 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

argument with himself or others as to the right and 
wrong of his actions, and his drinking will then be 
without restraint of any kind. Such cases usually be- 
come extreme in a very short time as there is nothing 
to prevent or check the acquirement of the drink habit. 
As a usual rule, however, after the first spree, there are 
many influences at work for and against its repetition. 
His mind will have presented to it two opposite and 
contending sets of suggestions — one urging him to 
drink, the other to resist it. Whether he drinks or not 
is decided by which suggestions are most frequent, the 
most powerful and to which ones he is the most 
friendly. 

The suggestions to drink may come in a hundred 
different guises and under many circumstances. They 
may come from his subconscious mind in the form of 
remembrances of past pleasant experiences ; they may 
come from his companions who urge him to drink with 
them for sociability's sake and they draw for him rosy 
mental pictures of the good time he is going to have. 
He may even coerce his reason and judgment into de- 
ciding that he will be actually benefited by drinking. 
If you will again read the chapter on the "Causes of 
Drinking, ,, you will note each cause, when analyzed, 
with the possible exception of "Injuries" and some 
cases of "periodical" outbreaks, is the result of Sug- 
gestion, in one form or another. 

Opposed to the suggestions to drink are the 
drinker's reason and judgment, the entreaties and 
arguments of his family and real friends, and such 
«s> auto-suggestions as arise from his consideration of the 
question pro and con. His reason and judgment tell 
him that alcohol is poisonous, that it cannot benefit him 
1 in any possible way, that it is injuring him mentally 
and physically, that its use has destroyed countless 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 99 

thousands and that it will do the same to him, as he 
cannot hope to be the one single exception to an uni- 
versal rule. His memory brings before him the picture 
of an intoxicated man, with all its repugnant details, 
he remembers his own unpleasant experiences of the 
past, he hears the pleadings of those whom he loves 
and esteems, he recalls his many promises and pledges 
and usually says to himself, "I guess I won't take an- 
other drink." 

He means what he says, at the time he says it, but 
his auto-suggestion is not positive, it is faint, weak 
and easily overcome. His decision to stop is not ac- 
companied by any real intense desire to do so, and way 
back in his head he is searching round for some excuse 
to break over. The suggestion of possible pleasures is 
always more alluring and consequently stronger than 
the thoughts of deprivation of any character, and 
therefore it usually is not difficult to crowd out such 
weak auto-suggestions as have been made for absti- 
nence. Almost any excuse is sufficient and with that 
lovable old vagabond, Rip Van Winkle, they are prone 
to say "we won't count this one." 

As previously stated any suggestion which is con- 
stantly presented to the mind and entertained therein, 
grows stronger with each repetition and soon accumu- 
lates sufficient force to overcome a very strong counter 
suggestion. An example of this was given in the con- 
duct of a soldier under fire for the first time, but let 
us take another directly related to our subject. 

Let us take the case of a drinker who has been 
threatened with the loss of his position on account of 
his habits, or whose wife and family are going to leave 
him because of his drinking, or who comes close to 
death because he was drunk, or who hears a powerful 
temperance sermon and is exhorted to sign the pledge. 



100 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Any one of these is a very strong suggestion for him 
to stop and it may be sufficiently forceful to cause him 
to act in accordance with the suggestion and stop 
drinking entirely. The suggestion has been strong 
enough to accomplish its purpose, but if it is not 
maintained and strengthened by frequent suggestions 
and auto-suggestions of the same character the effect 
will not be a lasting one. This is because counter sug- 
gestions will be constantly given by his companions 
and while taken singly they may not be very strong or 
compelling, yet by their being frequently repeated they 
gather cumulative strength by their numbers and re- 
currence and soon outweigh in potency the suggestion 
which caused him to stop. As the stronger suggestion 
is the one which is acted upon he returns again to 
drink. This is the reason why spasmodic efforts at 
reform produce such poor results. 

It must also be borne in mind that after a time 
alcohol so effects the nervous organization as to estab- 
lish a "craving for intoxicants" which is added to all 
the other influences which make for his continued in- 
dulgence. The habit of drinking has been established 
and the craving becomes a constant auto-suggestion to 
drink. This is probably the strongest of all because it 
comes from the subconscious mind which mostly con- 
trols all our habits. The subconscious mind does not 
reflect or reason and when the craving makes itself 
felt it says in effect, go get a drink, and all suggestions 
for restraint are ignored as if they never had been 
presented. 

After a time the suggestions against drink be- 
come fewer and fainter, while those for it have grown 
so strong that there is but little or no attempt made to 
resist them. Drinking becomes habitual or done as a 
matter of course, the only restraining influence being 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 101 

lack of opportunity or lack of price. The auto-sug- 
gestion to drink which was at first only occasional and 
easily routed becomes the fixed idea and we find all the 
drinkers' efforts are bent upon just one thing — the se- 
curing of enough intoxicants of any kind or character, 
in any way or manner, to drink to insensibility. 



Knowing something of alcohol's effects on the 
various organs and tissues of the body, and studying 
the mental processes of the drinker, I am sure that 
you now realize that Inebriety is a distinct disease 
involving both body and mind. With this knowledge 
we are now prepared to examine the various methods 
by which it has been treated in the past, to select such 
means as will prove beneficial and to reject those which 
common sense and experience have shown to be use- 
less. 



The Chances for a Cure Among 
Different Classes of Drinkers 

When it is said that Drunkenness is a curable dis- 
ease, it must not be supposed that every case treated is 
certain to recover. Such a result is beyond the realms 
of possibility, as there can be no absolute certainty 
where human fallibility enters into the equation. The 
great majority of drinkers, however, are curable and 
this fact makes thorough and persistent treat- 
ment advisable in every instance, though it must 
be borne in mind that you can not cure drinkers in 
masses, each one requires individual handling and such 
treatment as will fit his particular case. With each one 
there are circumstances and conditions peculiar to that 
case alone, and these must be taken into consideration 
before anything approaching a definite prognosis can 
be given. But as the various types and classes of 
drinkers differ in their curability it will be well to con- 
sider the points for and against the likelihood of their 
being cured as a class and also to give a brief outline 
of the general method of treatment. 

The Curability of the Voluntary Drinker 

The voluntary drinker, the one who has no 
"craving" for drink and who has no fixed habit of 
drinking, is not a subject for medical treatment per se. 
As there is no physical disease, he cannot be helped by 
such physical agencies as medicines. His drinking is 
due to a vicious mental attitude which can only be 
changed through appeals to his moral sense, his rea- 
son and judgment and by the use of suggestion. It 
should be mentioned that purely voluntary drinkers 

102 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 103 

are comparatively rare, except as beginners, so if a 
man is at all regular in his use of intoxicants you must 
not be deceived into thinking that it is entirely voli- 
tional on his part, as you will remember that nearly 
every drinker asserts that he can take a drink or let 
it alone just as he chooses. His opinion as to his 
drinking cannot be taken as being at all accurate. 

The voluntary drinker as a rule is extremely 
egotistical, he thinks he knows best what he should or 
should not do and he lets it be distinctly understood 
that he proposes to follow his own sweet will. With 
him ordinary arguments and entreaties will avail but 
little and medicines not at all. Scolding just arouses 
his combativeness and antagonism. However, there 
still is left suggestion, for his case the most potent of 
reformatory influences, and it is from this in some 
form, that results are effected. 

This class of drinkers often stop spontaneously 
without any apparent outside interference. They un- 
dergo some experience or receive some strong impres- 
sion which causes them to see the light and they have 
the good sense to stop their drinking before their 
"vice" has become a disease. Love of a good woman 
or marriage and its responsibilities has caused many a 
young roysterer to settle down and forswear his bad 
habits. However, knowing drunkenness and drinkers 
as I do, I would not advise any woman to marry a 
man for the purpose of reforming him. Anyone hav- 
ing such an idea had better let the reformation take 
place first, and then give it time to get "set" before 
taking the chance of being a drunkard's wife or the 
mother of an alcoholic's children. 

Becoming active members of some church and 
taking the pledge will be effective with many. Note 
that I say becoming an active member of a church and 



104 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

not merely affiliating with one. It makes little or no 
difference what the denomination or tenets may be, 
as long as he puts his religion into every day use. He 
must change his habits of thought. Any church, sect, 
or belief which will do this for him will effect his re- 
formation. If his mental attitude is not altered en- 
tirely he can "profess religion" as loudly and as long 
as he wishes but it will avail him nothing in the way 
of mental or moral benefit. 

Many voluntary drinkers declare that they will 
not stop drinking and oppose with all their might 
every attempt to make them do so. The relatives or 
friends of such individuals usually think that nothing 
can be done, or disgusted with their purblind, egotisti- 
cal stubbornness they cease trying to aid them and 
leave them to work out their own salvation or destruc- 
tion as they choose. Despite the seeming difficulties 
much can be done for these cases as a large proportion 
will yield to properly given suggestion. The method of 
using it in these and similar instances will be ex- 
plained a little further on. 

Constant and Periodical Drinkers 

As a rule the constant or steady drinker is more 
quickly amenable to treatment than the true periodic. 
Why this is so I do not know except it be that in the 
case of the periodic there is an unknown nervous con- 
dition present which does not obtain in the case of the 
steady drinker. You will recall that with the true 
periodic there is no desire for drink between sprees, 
but when the time approaches he experiences an in- 
tense craving for intoxicants which he is pretty sure 
to appease at any cost and despite all efforts to restrain 
him. After the outbreak there is another period of 
sobriety and freedom from the craving. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 105 

In case the sprees of the periodic are very fre- 
quent, say from three to six weeks apart, the general 
line of treatment would be nearly the same as for the 
steady drinker, but should the sprees be six months 
apart, or longer, there would have to be marked differ- 
ences in the handling. Little or nothing can be done 
with drugs between the attacks, as there are usually 
no conditions which call for medication. W^ut if the 
time of the outbreak can be judged, either from the 
regularity of its reoccurrence or from premonitory 
signs and symptoms, it may be aborted entirely or at 
least cut very short and in time completely cured. *"" 

The preventive treatment before the attack should 
be elimination through intestines, kidneys and skin, 
pushed to the maximum, and such measures as will 
result in decreasing the nerve tension which is prac- 
tically always present. Baths, sleep and diet are of 
great value. Mental treatment through the proper 
suggestions is of great importance. 

The Frenzied Drinker 

The drinker who becomes extremely violent under 
the influence of liquor; who threatens to assault or 
even kill all those who oppose him; who gets an idea 
that he has been grievously wronged and that he must 
avenge his injuries, or who becomes extremely morose 
and melancholy with a tendency to commit suicide, 
does not have as favorable an outlook for a cure as has 
the one whose mental and nervous mechanism is more 
stable. The nervous organization of such an individual 
is not well balanced to begin with, and even under 
normal conditions his thoughts and convictions are 
liable to be askew. When his mental instability is in- 
creased by alcohol he becomes temporarily a maniac. 

In these cases physical treatment is required to 



106 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

overcome the alcoholic poisoning and to restore as far 
as possible the nervous balance. Mental treatment, 
covering some considerable time is also a necessity. 
To really cure such a drinker he must be shown and 
taught how to gain and maintain self-control, not 
alone of his desire for drink, but of his other traits, 
characteristics and habits. This can be done by the aid 
of auto-suggestion, and if he is really desirous of being 
cured and of gaining the mastery of his violent im- 
pulses, an astonishing transformation of his whole 
character can be accomplished. 

Epileptics, Mental Defectives and Degenerates 

Drinkers who have some brain lesion with which 
they have been born or which has been acquired 
through some injury, are very difficult to cure. If the 
defection of the brain is pronounced and the drinker is 
either an idiot or a degenerate but very little can be 
done through ordinary medication. Sometimes where 
the trouble has been caused by an injury to the skull, 
causing brain pressure, recovery will take place after 
an operation to remove the irritation. With the others 
constant supervision to prevent their obtaining liquor 
is about the only means of preventing their drinking. 
Occasionally long confinement in institutions, where 
some attention is paid to treatment, has been found to 
be effective, probably because the memory of the 
drinking experiences fades with time, when there is no 
opportunity to renew them. 

Confirmed Alcoholics Without Family Ties 

The most difficult class to successfully treat is the 
confirmed alcoholic who has lost all family ties. The 
large cities have great numbers of him. He is usually 
a tramp and vagrant, having no regular trade or avo- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 107 

cation. He has been drinking for so long that he has 
lost all self-respect; he has ceased to regard the opin- 
ion or feelings of others; his entire sense of moral 
responsibility has been nearly or entirely lost. Alco- 
holic degeneration is usually very marked, his mental- 
ity is of a naturally low order or has become so on 
account of drink. He is the drinker who cannot be 
trusted at all, the "soak" or "bum" who has no man- 
hood left. He is usually half starved in body, totally 
so in mind, a prey to various ailments, a pitiable hu- 
man wreck. 

About as far as our cities, counties and states 
have gone with their measures for handling such cases, 
is to sentence the drinker to jail for thirty days, six 
months or a year, as the case may be. From a curative 
standpoint this does absolutely no good, even if they 
receive treatment for drunkenness while there. You 
may confine a drinker of this type in jail and free his 
body of its alcoholic poison, but his mental and moral 
make-up has been warped and twisted and no attempt 
is made to treat that phase of his trouble. His thoughts 
are continuously centered on the big time he is going 
to have just as soon as he is released and he proceeds 
to fill up at the first opportunity. 

Provided that a drinker of this class still possesses 
a little pride of self and some remnants of ambition 
much can be done by a thorough institutional treatment 
which takes into consideration both the mental and 
physical aspects of the case, and provided further that 
after leaving the institution he is given employment 
under conditions which will keep him out of the way 
of temptation and which will enable him to reestablish 
his self-respect and manhood. If this cannot be done 
curative treatment is useless. 

Hospital or sanitarium treatment for these cases 



108 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

is an absolute necessity, and it should be continuous 
for at least six to twelve months, and in some in- 
stances even longer. In addition to the treatment for 
the removal of the drink craving, and other ailments 
incident thereto, it must be remembered that these 
cases are starved in mind and body, and both of these 
must be given plenty of nourishment, especially the 
mind. A few weeks of skilled medical care with 
plenty of food, ordinarily will serve to restore one of 
these wrecks to the outward semblance of a man. He 
will have lost the intense craving for liquor and the 
physical discomforts incident to the withdrawal of 
drink will have passed away, but he will be far from 
being cured. 

If he is turned out at this time, the tendency is for 
him to seek his old haunts, and associates and to re- 
sume his old habits, and it is only a question of a very 
short time until he starts to drink again. In order to 
overcome this, each patient, as soon as he has recov- 
ered some degree of bodily strength, should be put to 
work at some light labor which will occupy his time 
and his mind. Then the task of instilling new ideas 
of self-respect, self-restraint, honor, and self-satisfac- 
tion because of regained manhood, should be begun 
and faithfully continued. Needless to say the one in 
charge of an institution of this character must have 
an intimate knowledge of Inebriety, a sincere sympa- 
thy with those in his care, and a keen conception of 
their mode of reasoning. Furthermore he must un- 
derstand the Law of Suggestion in all its phases, as it 
is only through suggestion that the right mental atti- 
tude can be reestablished and will-power and mind- 
power restored to a degree sufficient to once more 
make them producing members of a community. 

The treatment of this class of patients can only 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 109 

be fully carried out by public institutions, supported by 
public funds and backed by laws which make it possi- 
ble to keep patients under supervision and treatment 
for such time as may be necessary. These patients 
have no money to pay for treatment and no desire to 
be cured. In fact they have no object in being cured. 
They are an expense and a danger to society and in 
their condition are of no value to themselves or others. 
But a large proportion of them can be again made pro- 
ducers and self-supporting through proper care and 
handling and the state should establish and equip suf- 
ficient institutions for this purpose and pass such laws 
as may be necessary to compel chronic alcoholics, of 
the above type, to undergo a thorough course of treat- 
ment. 

The medical part of the treatment of this case is 
not difficult, but special care must be taken to guard 
against complications when liquor is suddenly with- 
drawn. The after treatment is the most important and 
also the one which taxes the ingenuity and resource- 
fulness of the physician in charge. This after treat- 
ment consists in inculcating into the minds of these 
men that it is better to lead sober, industrious lives 
than it is to be "bums" and "loafers." Telling them 
stories of "Good Little Rollo" will not arouse any im- 
pulse toward sobriety and labor, they are too cynical 
and too skeptical of the value of that brand of good- 
ness. They don't want to be preached at and they 
don't want to be moralized over. In fact you can do 
nothing with them at all until they have had hospital 
treatment sufficient to overcome the craving for drink 
and to some extent its effects; then they should be 
given some light interesting work, preferably in the 
open air; then each case should be taken individually 
to see if there is left some smoldering spark of self- 



110 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

respect and manhood which can be fanned into a flame. 
Drinkers of this type have to be given character build- 
ing treatment as well as remedies for their physical 
ills. If this can be done there is every possibility for 
good results in a large proportion of those who are 
now down and out. 

The Drinker Who Wants to be Cured 

The drinker who truly desires to stop drink will 
experience little or no difficulty in being entirely cured. 
By a desire to be cured I mean more than the express- 
ing of a wish to stop or consent to undergo treatment. 
Many drinkers will say that they wish to stop drinking 
and that they will take or do anything which will en- 
able them to accomplish this end, but all it amounts to 
is empty assertions and worthless promises that were 
never intended to be kept. But if the desire for a cure 
be sincere and earnest, and with it goes a willingness 
to take such steps or measures as may be necessary to 
ensure the fulfillment of his wish, then the matter be- 
comes comparatively simple. Such a one with proper 
medical treatment for the alcoholized body, and care- 
fully chosen suggestive treatment for the alcoholized 
mind, is practically certain to be cured, and with the 
mental treatment persisted in for a reasonable period 
he is morally certain to stay cured. 

The Drinker Who Will Not Consent to Take 
Treatment 

How about the man who says he will not take 
treatment, that he does not need treatment and that he 
does not desire to stop drinking? Can anything be 
done for him? Yes, indeed! Much more can be done 
for him, both physically and mentally, than is usually 
thought possible or even imagined. As stated in the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 111 

preceding paragraph, a sincere desire to be cured is 
of great importance and with one having that desire a 
cure is almost a certainty. And now mark this point 
well — through medication and suggestion you can in* 
duce an intense desire to be cured in one who at first 
may be actually opposed to stopping and who has re- 
fused to make any effort toward that end. 

While it may be true that not every case can be 
successfully treated in this way, yet such a large per- 
centage will respond to this method that every one who 
has to contend with drink should exhaust its every 
possibility before even thinking that they have done all 
in their power for their patient along curative lines. As 
to which cases will prove the most amenable, no physi- 
cian can tell until the treatment is actually used. It 
should be tried with all who are unwilling to take 
remedies of their own free will, as some of the appar- 
ently least promising yield the very best results. 

Results in these cases are obtained by influencing 
the conscious mind through the subconscious. You 
will remember that the subconscious mind does not re- 
flect or reason and that it will receive and act upon 
any suggestion which reaches it, provided the sugges- 
tion is not counteracted by a stronger one. Nearly 
every one is aware that it has been demonstrated time 
and again that a hypnotized person will receive a sug- 
gestion and act upon that suggestion when he returns 
to his normal waking state. The hypnotized subject 
does not know that in performing such action that he 
is following out a suggestion received when hypnotized 
but thinks he is acting on his own initiative and ac- 
cording to his own free will. 

Under hypnotism the conscious mind is put to 
sleep, but the subconscious is always awake, active and 
very open to receive suggestions. The same condition 



112 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

obtains during natural sleep. The conscious mind may 
not be quite so "dead to the world/' as when the sub- 
ject is hypnotized but it is enough so for all curative 
purposes of suggestion. It has also been demonstrated 
that it is not necessary to hypnotize a person to reach 
the subconscious mind and it has been shown that 
during natural sleep the subconscious mind will receive 
suggestions and will act upon them during the waking 
state. It is the discovery of this trait of the subcon- 
sciousness that makes it possible to successfully treat 
that class of drinkers who through ignorance or stub- 
born egotism refuse even to consider taking the treat- 
ment they so much require. 

In addition to the suggestive treatment certain 
medicines can be used for the amelioration and cure of 
the "craving for drink/' which as you know is one of 
the strongest counter or destructive subconscious sug- 
gestions against abstinence. These medicines can be, 
if necessary, prepared so that they can be administered 
in the tea, coffee or food of the drinker without his 
detecting them. In spite of many offhanded medical 
opinions to the contrary many severe cases of drunk- 
enness have been cured by such medicines, even with- 
out the aid of suggestion. 

The best results, however, in this class of cases, 
will be obtained by using this method of treatment for 
the purpose of establishing in the patient's mind a 
fixed and expressed desire to be cured and a desire for 
the necessary treatment. In other words it is best to 
use this method as a first step and just as soon as the 
patient consents to and wishes for treatment, then 
change at once and begin to use such medicines and 
suggestive treatment as will tend to give him the 
quickest and best results. 

I am fully aware of the fact that there will be 



AND HOW TO CURE IT us 

many who will doubt, disbelieve and even ridicule the 
idea of making a man completely change his attitude 
toward drink and do it while he is asleep. This is only 
to be expected. Most of us disbelieve everything we 
can't see with our natural eyes. Every scientific dis- 
covery which could not be seen, felt or heard has met 
with doubt and disdain. Even in the face of positive 
results people say "It can't be so, because I never 
heard of such a thing." They take very much the 
same position as the old farmer who when on a visit 
to a circus saw a giraffe for the first time. He looked 
mother nature's animal joke over and over, and after 
half an hour's careful scrutiny he delivered this care- 
ful judgment: "By gosh, I don't believe it. There 
aint no such animile." 

You may have never heard of making a man 
change his mind by using suggestion, but in the light 
of what you have thus far studied of suggestion, in 
the light of some of your own personal experiences, 
doesn't the method appeal to your common sense? Is 
it half as wonderful or mysterious as wireless telegra- 
phy? Doubt if you must, but in the name of fair play 
at least give the method a thorough trial before you 
disbelieve. 



Treatment of Acute Alcoholic 
Conditions 

In ordinary cases of intoxication the services of a 
physician are seldom called upon and the only treat- 
ment given is perhaps something to produce vomiting 
and to allay the disagreeable symptoms and sensations 
of the "morning after." The patient upon returning 
home in an intoxicated condition goes to bed and falls 
into a heavy slumber which lasts until the active intoxi- 
cation has passed. Upon awakening he experiences 
the usual after effects of burning thirst, shaky limbs, 
sore stomach, splitting headache, bad taste in the 
mouth, furry tongue, nausea and vomiting and is 
usually in a very repentant and remorseful frame of 
mind. 

His remorse, by the way, will last just as long as 
he feels badly from his spree and no longer. With 
temporary relief comes a return of his egotism and 
belief that he "never again'' will drink to intoxication. 
Loud and long are his promises to reform while he is 
still suffering, but you remember the rhyme: 

"When the devil was sick, 
The devil a saint would be. 
When the devil got well, 

The devil a saint was he." 

Each drinker usually has his own methods for 
overcoming the after effects of intoxication, and as he 
ignorantly believes that he is all right in every way as 
soon as he sobers up he seldom or never calls a physi- 
cian until some exceptionally severe attack frightens 

114 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 115 

him into seeking medical advice and treatment for the 
condition which caused his anxiety. As a rule he 
does not desire treatment for Inebriety, nor does he 
wish to stop drinking. What he really wants is some 
drug which will counteract and neutralize the effects 
of alcohol and at the same time permit him to go 
ahead and drink to his heart's content. 

More often than not the physician whom he con- 
sults attempts to comply with his wish for temporary 
relief and permission for continued indulgence. In- 
stead of explaining to the patient, plainly and sincerely, 
that his condition is a serious one and demands more 
than mere palliative and temporary treatment, the phy- 
sician treats the matter very lightly, prescribing bro- 
mides or other sedatives for his nervous condition, a 
simple tonic of some sort and then dismisses the pa- 
tient, by saying, "You get these prescriptions filled 
and take them according to directions, and you will 
be all right in a couple of days." Occasionally the 
physician will admonish the patient to stop drinking or 
at least moderate his use of intoxicants, but it is only 
the exception who advocates or undertakes the thor- 
ough treatment for Inebriety which is really required. 

The reasons for the physician's attitude may be 
ignorance of the seriousness of Inebriety, a lack of 
knowledge of the exact methods of treatment, an un- 
willingness to take the case because it may interfere 
with his practice by, in some unknown way, arousing 
the prejudices of his other patients or he may still be 
among the very small minority who think Inebriety 
only a bad habit which requires no medical attention of 
any kind. 

The result of this attitude has been that hundreds 
of men have died of alcoholism; most of whom could 
have been saved if they had been fully instructed as to 



116 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

their condition when they applied for some measure 
of relief. Let me urge upon the physician, who is con- 
sulted by a drinker, not to dismiss his case with a sim- 
ple prescription, moral platitudes and perfunctory ad- 
vice, but give him the attention and thorough treat- 
ment which he needs. Study his case and his require- 
ments, insist upon his submitting himself to a course 
of physical and mental treatment for his inebriety. 
You will find great numbers will respond gladly to 
your advice and if you have never before given these 
cases serious attention you will be surprised and de- 
lighted at the results obtained. 

When called upon to treat acute alcoholic condi- 
tions bear in mind that the means employed are seldom 
curative as to the Disease of Drunkenness. [They are 
active measures employed to get rid of a severe tem- 
porary condition. After the acute trouble has been 
relieved, the chronic condition still remains and calls 
for an entirely different handling. The patient should 
also be carefully watched for some few weeks after an 
acute attack to note whether or not any serious com- 
plications have arisen. 

How to Sober a Drunken Person 

It very frequently happens that a man will start 
drinking heavily and forget or disregard the fact that 
in a few hours he must look after some important 
business, go on a journey, appear before an audience, 
attend a social function or that some other similar 
circumstance will require his presence in a normal con- 
dition, and there arises the necessity of sobering him as 
quickly as possible. There is not time enough to per- 
mit him to sleep off the effects of his spree, as is ordi- 
narily done, and more active measures must be 
adopted. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 117 

The first move is to stop all alcohol at once and to 
get the patient where treatment can be properly admin- 
istered. A room with bath, having hot and cold water, 
should be secured, and if bath has a shower so much 
the better. The next thing is to empty the contents of 
the stomach as completely as possible. For this pur- . 
pose may be used various emetics such as a large glass- 
ful of warm salt water; a dram of the fluid extract of 
ipecac; a teaspoonful or two of ground mustard in a 
glass of warm water, repeated in ten minutes if emesis j 
does not take place after the first dose. In obstinate 
cases 20 grains of sulphate of zinc dissolved in a glass 
of luke warm water and taken at one dose will usually 
prove effective. It is rapid in its effects and less de- 
pressing than most other emetics. 

Tickling the back part of the throat with the fin- 
gers or a feather will, with most individuals, produce 
vomiting. If a physician is in charge of the case the 
stomach can be washed out by means of the stomach 
tube, and the contents fully removed. Probably the 
most rapid emetic would be a 1-10 to 1-6 hypodermic 
of apomorphia, but this should never be given except 
by a physician. Apomorphia acts on the vomiting 
center in the medulla, and is productive of considerable 
depression, therefore it should not be used in these 
cases unless the need is urgent. 

After the stomach has been emptied give a little 
lemon juice and water, seltzer, apollinaris, vichy, or I 
other carbonated waters, lime or barley water, a tea- 
spoonful of vinegar in a glass of water, cold tea with 
lemon juice, orange juice, etc. Use only small quanti- 
ties at a time but give rather frequently as long as good 
results are noted. 

It is also advisable to eliminate the contents of the 
bowels as rapidly and thoroughly as possible. After 



118 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

j the stomach has been emptied you can give Epsom or 
Rochelle salts, a Seidlitz powder, Hunyadi or other 
quick acting aperient waters. If the stomach is very 
much disturbed it may not retain the first dose but try 
it again after fifteen minutes and you will usually be 
successful. A rectal injection of two quarts of rather 
warm, soapy water will rapidly empty the lower bowel. 

The patient should then be given a hot bath fol- 
lowed by a cold shower. If shower cannot be had give 
cold sponge bath using plenty of water. Water falling 
on the back of the neck and spine, stimulates the heart 
and increases circulation. A cold shower or sponge 
bath followed by a brisk rubbing will be found enjoy- 
able by most patients and its sobering effect is 
splendid. 

After this the patient should be allowed to sleep a 
short time, the longer the better. Upon awakening he 
should take a brisk walk in the open air and do con- 
siderable deep breathing, filling his lungs to full ca- 
pacity twenty to thirty times. Do not do this rapidly 
and stop when it causes dizziness. 

Up to this time the patient should have had no 
food, but should have been given an abundance of 
water or the various drinks above enumerated. He 
can now be given nourishment in the shape of orange 
juice or the fruit, iced buttermilk, ice cream, raw clam 
juice, beef tea, chicken broth, soups well seasoned, 
oyster stew, raw oysters with a little vinegar, salt or 
smoked fish. Give only small quantities at a time, do 
not load the stomach, Do not give the red meats, 
vegetables, pastries, puddings or anything difficult of 
digestion. 

This line of treatment will give most gratifying re- 
sults and in a comparatively short time. If you have 
two to three hours to work in you should follow the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 119 

foregoing procedure if possible. It is not necessary 
that a physician give the treatment, except where the 
stomach tube is used or hypodermics are given. 

If the above measures cannot well be employed 
then you may use the official Liquor Ammonii Acetatis. 
This is given in teaspoonful doses in a quarter of a 
glass of water. Repeat the doses every ten to fifteen 
minutes, for from one to three hours. The drug must 
be freshly prepared. This treatment often gives quick 
results, though it may cause nausea and vomiting, 
which by the way will do no harm. 

The following combination may also be found ef- 
fectual as a stimulant and sedative. 

Aromatic spirits of ammonia dr. 2 

Spirits of camphor dr. \y 2 

Tincture of hyoscyamus dr. 2y 2 

Compound spirits of lavender, enough 
to make oz. 2 

Dose is one teaspoonful every hour in a quarter of 
a glass of water. 

The dyspepsia which so often follows a hard 
drinking bout may be relieved by a dose or two of 
lacto-peptone, or pepsin, or sub-carbonate of bismuth. 
In some cases a powder of equal parts of sodium-bi- 
carbonate and rhubarb taken with a little water will 
give fine results. When there is belching of acid gas 
use lime water and milk equal parts, half a glassful at 
a time, repeat every half hour if necessary. 

You will find the foregoing measures will give 
you the maximum results obtainable outside of a sani- 
tarium and in possibly ninety-nine per cent of cases 
they will prove amply sufficient. 



120 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Acute Alcoholism 
Acute alcoholism is usually caused by drinking 
large quantities of beer or spirits in a very short time. 
The same condition may occur with one who has been 
taking small amounts of alcohol rather frequently and 
for a considerable length of time. In the latter case 
the alcoholic effects seem to cumulate until all at once 
the symptoms of intoxication appear and rapidly grow 
worse until indications of a severe toxaemia are pres- 
ent. It is more than being drunk, as in connection with 
the ordinary findings of intoxication there are many 
evidences of intense poisoning. To the non-medical 
observer however, a man suffering from acute alcohol- 
ism would appear to be just as drunk as is possible 
and then some. And he would not be very far out 
of the way at that. 

The earlier symptoms are those common to 
S t ms a ^ ordinary intoxications but when the 

severe stage is reached there will be found 
partial or complete coma, which is a state of profound 
insensibility from which it is difficult or impossible to 
arouse a person ; if the patient can be aroused he will 
be in a stupor and his answers to questions will be 
silly and incoherent; there will be a general paralysis, 
with loss of power over all limbs; sensation is also 
greatly lessened or lost entirely. Control of the blad- 
der and bowels is lost and there may be incontinence 
of urine and feces. The pupils of the eye may be con- 
tracted or enlarged, the eyes are usually injected or 
blood-shot. Face bloated and red, though occasionally 
it may be very pale ; the skin is cold and clammy to the 
touch. The pulse is frequent and feeble, heart is often 
weak, dilated and myocarditic. The breathing will be 
slow and heavy but as a rule is not stertorous. 

With a history of hard drinking or from the evi- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 121 

dence of companions it is not difficult to make a diag- 
nosis in ordinary cases, but it frequently happens that 
a man will be found lying insensible and unable to give 
any account of himself and then care must be taken 
not to jump to the conclusion that he is dead drunk 
and treat him accordingly. There are several other 
conditions which will produce nearly the same symp- 
toms as acute alcoholism, and if a mistake is made in 
diagnosis the patient is very apt to lose his life as a 
consequence. 
Precautions Sun stroke, heat stroke, uremia, a hemor- 

Against Wrong rhage in the brain, or a fracture of the 
Diagnosis. skull will all cause symptoms which will 

lead the careless or ignorant observer to at once pro- 
nounce it a case of drunkenness. This is specially true 
if there is a strong odor of liquor on the breath. It is 
very true that in most instances the diagnosis of 
drunkenness would be right, yet there have been so 
many fatal mistakes made, notably by police and hos- 
pital attendants whose duties bring them in contact 
with the most of these cases, that it is best to err on 
the side of caution and give the patient the benefit of 
the doubt until a careful, conscientious examination 
makes certain of a correct diagnosis. 

Let me take this occasion to say and emphasize 
the fact that the odor of liquor on the breath of an un- 
conscious man does not prove that he is drunk. He 
may have experienced a vague uneasiness or had some 
premonition that something was wrong with him and 
might have taken a drink of whiskey as a stimulant in 
an attempt to ward off the sickness or attack which he 
felt was coming on and upon reaching the street fell 
insensible. If the smell of liquor be taken as proof 
positive of his being drunk, there is every likelihood 
of his being taken to the police station and put in a 



122 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

cell to sleep it off rather than being hurried to a hos- 
pital where he rightfully should be taken for prompt 
and efficient treatment. If you are ever present when 
an unconscious person is found see to it that no snap 
judgment is given, either by a physician or others ; this 
precaution may save a life. Also for obvious reasons 
never give alcohol to a person found unconscious. 

The prognosis in acute alcoholism is good, for 
p . all patients who can have reasonably good 

care promptly and where there are no com- 
plications. With chronic inebriates who must be 
treated, if at all, in public hospitals the prognosis is 
not so favorable. This is not for lack of proper treat- 
ment after they arrive but because usually they are not 
found and taken care of until they have reached ex- 
treme stages. With these public charges acute alcoholic 
gastritis, acute nephritis and pneumonia are very com- 
mon and very fatal. They are illy nourished and hav- 
ing been subjected to exposure of all kinds are in poor 
physical shape to withstand the ravages of a severe 
illness requiring an abundance of recuperative power. 

The general treatment is along the same 
;™ e lines as that used for sobering a drunken 

person, though differing in some important 
particulars. In severe cases where there is grave dan- 
ger of collapse or complications of severe gastritis, 
nephritis, pneumonia or heart failure a physician 
should be called. The patient should be in a well 
ventilated room having bath with hot and cold water. 
All alcohol should be stopped at once, though some 
physicians use small doses with chronic alcoholics. The 
safest rule will be to cease its use entirely. Sometimes 
care must be taken to prevent well meaning but mis- 
guided friends from giving the patient whiskey in spite 
of the doctor's orders. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 123 

The stomach must be promptly emptied of its con- 
tents using some of the various means already sug- 
gested for that purpose. If a physician is in attend- 
ance the stomach tube can be employed and when the 
stomach is empty it should be again washed out with 
hot water to which a little powdered cinnamon or gin- 
ger has been added. If the prostration be not too 
great a hypodermic of 1-10 to 1-8 gr. of apomorphia 
can be given, as this will produce prompt emesis. Cau- 
tion should be used, however, as depression usually 
follows. 

An enema of two quarts of hot, soapy water 
should be given to clear the lower bowel. If the stom- 
ach will tolerate it give a good saline purge. Patient 
must be watched so that he can be cared for when 
emesis or an evacuation of urine or feces takes place, 
as he usually is in no condition to look after himself. 
When stomach has been emptied and free catharsis has 
taken place the patient can be allowed to sleep. He 
should be warmly wrapped in blankets until he sweats 
freely; the more he perspires the better, but as the 
windows should be open the danger of taking cold 
must be avoided. 

If prostration is very great it may be necessary to 
use heart stimulants, though cautiously. As long as 
there are no untoward symptoms present the patient 
can be allowed to sleep undisturbed. Give no medi- 
cines of any kind unless actively indicated. Great 
care should be used in employing narcotics or hyp- 
notics for the purpose of inducing sleep. They are 
all extremely depressing and are far more liable to do 
more harm than good. Baths, wet packs and rubbings 
will be just as effective and without the danger. 

Upon awakening the patient will undoubtedly 
complain of a severe headache, nausea, burning and ir- 



124 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

ritable stomach, and a bad taste in the mouth. There 
will be a feeling of general depression, faintness, 
trembling and shaky limbs and all the usual after 
effects of intoxication. 

To allay irritation of the stomach give plenty of 
fresh water or any of the various liquids heretofore 
mentioned for this purpose. When the stomach feels 
"raw" and food and drink, even water, distresses and 
burns, flax seed tea, slippery elm bark tea, or marsh- 
mallow root tea often will be found very soothing. 
They should be made thick, about the consistency of 
mucilage, and used cold, in small quantities frequently 
repeated. Hot applications over the stomach will give 
great relief. For the headache use cold towels or an 
ice bag. Do not give headache powders of any kind. 
Lemonade will be found enjoyable to most patients and 
very quickly removes the furred tongue and bad taste. 

A hot bath, followed by a cool shower or cool 
sponge bath and a brisk rubbing will be found invalu- 
able in restoring circulation and normal tone. Give 
food sparingly as long as the stomach is irritated. 
Begin with easily digested liquid diet, given sparingly 
and at long intervals. Use liquids freely, especially 
water, it is the best "drug" we have. Sleep and fresh 
air are all-important. Patient should be kept in bed as 
much as possible, though he can be allowed to walk 
about in the open air for a short period, but not to ex- 
haustion. 

In uncomplicated cases convalescence begins 
within twenty-four hours after commencing treatment 
and in three or four days the patient can resume his 
usual occupation. He may require a supporting treat- 
ment for a week or two and any of the bitter tonics 
can be used. To allay nerve irritation lupulin in 10 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 125 

grain doses three or four times a day will be found ef- 
fective and safe. 

Mania a Potu 
The name Mania a potu has been given to the 
fierce frenzy or acute mania often exhibited in a cer- 
tain type of drinkers when intoxicated. They are often 
called "fighting drunks" or "crazy drunks." The 
amount of liquor imbibed may not be excessive, but it 
causes severe mental excitement of a destructive type. 
It may vary in the severity of its manifestations from 
a state of quarrelsomeness to a vehement rage and vio- 
lent delirium. These are the drinkers who in their 
drunken fury go home and break the furniture, beat 
their families, "raise Cain" generally and often end by 
committing murder or suicide. 

Treatment for the acute condition is to relieve the 
mental excitement and induce sleep. The after treat- 
ment, if any is required, is the same as that for acute 
alcoholism. When the paroxysm of passion is on 
the patient should be controlled, using force if neces- 
sary. In severe cases a straight jacket or bed straps 
will have to be used. If he can be induced to take an 
emetic he will usually become quiet and go to sleep 
after emesis takes place. If a physician is in attend- 
ance give T /% gr. of apomorphia hypodermatically. You 
will be surprised how quickly this will cause him to 
calm down. 

It may be necessary to use drugs to quiet patient. 
If so, the following will be found effective, but should 
not be given except by the advice of a physician : 

Chloral dr. 4 

Potassium bromide dr. 4 

Tinct. hyoscyamus dr. 4 

Chloroform water, enough to make. . . .oz. 4 
Give a dessert spoonful every 2 hours until quiet 



126 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

or 3 doses are taken, then every 4 hours as required. 
It may be necessary to increase size of dose, with 
strong vigorous patients. 

These patients are rarely in any danger of col- 
lapse, the pulse is strong and full, the temperature 
normal, the face flushed and they are strong and ac- 
tive. Taking these facts into consideration no hesita- 
tion should be had to using heroic measures when 
necessary. A bucket full of ice water in the face often 
will have a very salutary effect. Up in the logging 
camps of Michigan it was found that a sudden and 
unexpected bath in an ice cold river or lake rapidly 
took the fight out of the worst of them. The police 
often have to deal with these drinkers, who when they 
find there is no one to fight or nothing to break in their 
cell, persist in yelling and cursing at the top of their 
voices. Turning the hose on them and giving them a 
thorough drenching soon quiets them. 

These measures are not altogether advocated but 
sometimes necessity makes harsh measures really the 
most humane for all concerned. They may be a little 
hard on the patient, but some consideration must be 
taken of the others, who might suffer great injury at 
his hands if he were not quickly and effectively 
quelled. Patients of this type should be given thor- 
ough treatment for chronic alcoholism for unless their 
drinking can be permanently controlled there is the 
always present danger of their committing a serious 
crime during the time they are drunk. 
Delirium Tremens 

Delirium Tremens is the severe trembling de- 
lirium which often occurs during the terminal stages 
of a severe drinking bout of several days' duration. It 
may also follow the sudden withdrawal of alcohol 
from a constant heavy drinker. It may also occur 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 127 

during abstinence after a spree. It may follow a ner- 
vous shock. It may come on suddenly or be preceded 
for a day or two by such premonitory symptoms as 
loss of appetite, stomach disturbances, restlessness, un- 
due excitement, anxiety, fear for himself or friends, 
sleeplessness, defects of sight and hearing. The pa- 
tient may recognize the significance of these symp- 
toms and seek to better his condition by stopping 
drink. This usually aggravates the trouble and he 
begins to drink again to steady himself. 

The patient usually awakens in the night 
S motoms trem bling and shaking, with a feeling of 

dread, he cannot sleep, he wants to walk 
around, talks constantly and incoherently, he seems 
afraid of something but does not know what it is, his 
glance is restless and his eyes express the fear he feels. 
Often he breaks out in a cold perspiration. Then he 
suffers from various and divers hallucinations, he be- 
gins to hear and to "see things." He may hear all 
sorts of noises from the chirping of insects to the roar- 
ing of wild beasts. The various objects about him take 
on the most fantastic shapes and perform the most im- 
possible actions. Sometimes these will be humorous 
in character but more often they assume the shapes of 
terrifying beasts or loathsome reptiles. This latter is 
so frequent as to cause Delirium Tremens to be com- 
monly known by the very expressive term of "the 
snakes." He usually sees whatever he most dreads 
when sober. As the trouble progresses the muscular 
tremors increase, the pulse becomes rapid, weak, and 
irregular, and the tongue "furry." The expression of 
the eyes is wild and vacant, the pupils contracted. The 
muscles are in constant tremor and insomnia is contin- 
uous. There is moderate fever and muttering de- 
lirium. Various complications as pneumonia, gas- 



128 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

tritis, nephritis and neuritis may arise and their symp- 
toms will be added to the others present. 
The Delirium Tremens is usually self limiting and 

Prognosis, of comparatively short duration, reaching 
a favorable or fatal termination in from three to 
six days. In favorable cases improvement begins on 
the second or third day and the symptoms gradually 
subside. The patient is usually out of danger when 
a natural, restful sleep is obtained ; this is followed by 
a cessation of all hallucinations and by a desire for 
food. In unfavorable cases death usually comes from 
exhaustion due to malnutrition, constant movement 
and loss of sleep. Or it may come suddenly from 
heart failure, or from some complication as hemor- 
rhage of the brain, pneumonia, or acute inflammation 
of the stomach or kidneys. 

In uncomplicated cases where the patient can 
have prompt and efficient medical attention the chances 
for recovery are always good. The chances against 
recovery increase with the number of attacks; after 
the second the prognosis is unfavorable. With chronic 
alcoholic vagrants the prognosis is also unfavorable. 
Their cases are very likely to be complicated with 
pneumonia, acute gastritis and acute inflammation of 
the kidneys, and they do not, as a rule, receive medical 
care until it is too late. It has been held by many that 
the seriousness of the attack depends upon the condi- 
tion of the kidneys, and this seems to be borne out by 
results. Recovery from Delirium Tremens is doubt- 
ful in case of severe injury, inflammatory troubles 
and infections. 
The The treatment of Delirium Tremens should 

Treatment be under the direct supervision of a skilled 
physician, and a nurse should be in constant attend- 
ance. The more experience physician and nurse have 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 120 

had with this class of patients the better. Never 
undertake to handle a case of this character without a 
physician if it can possibly be avoided. Treatment 
should be begun as early as possible. If the pre- 
monitory symptoms are noticed, prompt measures may 
abort the attack or at least lessen its severity and 
duration. 

A patient exhibiting the premonitory symptoms 
of Delirium Tremens should not be told what they 
indicate. Because of the nervous shock a severe attack 
may be precipitated by informing one on the verge that 
he is in for a session with the ''horrors. " The patient 
should be told that his nervous system demands quiet, 
rest, abstinence from drink and thorough elimination, 
and that if he will assist the physician as much as 
possible by carrying out instructions he will be all 
right in a few days and can go back to work. 

The abortive treatment should be to stop the use 
of alcohol at once, unless it is absolutely required, and 
then it should be given in milk in very small doses, 
and as far apart as possible. Thorough elimination 
should then be established; through the skin by hot 
baths; through the bowels by salines, and through 
the kidneys by mild diuretics as Potassium acetate or 
citrate. Wrapping patient in cold wet sheets for an 
hour or two, followed by a vigorous rubbing will 
prove of benefit. Immersion in a bath tub of hot 
water for from one to two hours is an excellent 
measure. If this cannot be done frequent sponge baths 
should be given. A thorough rubbing of the spine 
from the base of the skull downwards will give relief 
to nervous tension. Keep patient in a cool, dimly 
lighted room with plenty of fresh air, but avoid drafts. 
Sleep is the great end desired, but do not use hypnotics 
or narcotics to bring it about. Food should be given 



130 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

sparingly, and in the form of soups and broths. Water 
should be used very freely, inside and out. 

In a fully developed case of Delirium Tremens 
the end sought by the physician is quiet, rest, thorough 
elimination and, above all, sleep. The patient should 
be placed in a quiet, well ventilated room, partially 
darkened, though some will be quieter in a room 
brilliantly lighted, as they may have extreme fear of 
darkness or their hallucinations are more pronounced 
in the dark. Confinement in a padded or "strong" 
room is not usually required. No visitors should be 
allowed and the patient should see only the physician 
and nurse. He should be kept in bed as much as pos- 
sible, but should not be strapped or put in a straight 
jacket except in extreme cases where his violence 
will result in injury to himself or others. Usually a 
sheet fastened at the sides will be enough to keep him 
in bed. At night it may be necessary to fold a couple 
of sheets into broad bands two feet wide and place 
them over his shoulders and arms, diagonally across 
his breast from one side to the other. This will force 
him to recline without injuring him. 

The use of all alcohol should be stopped at once. 
This may increase the first severity of the symptoms 
but it also shortens the attack. In old chronic drinkers, 
especially when pneumonia complicates matters, it may 
be deemed advisable to administer brandy or whiskey. 
If so the dose should be small, as infrequent as pos- 
sible, and given in milk. 

Thorough elimination should be effected by baths, 
salines, etc., as outlined in the suggested preventive 
treatment. The diet should be little or nothing during 
the first two days; a little milk or milk and vichy or 
seltzer can be given if the stomach will retain it. After 
the first two days soups, broths, milk, butter-milk, raw 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 131 

eggs beaten in milk or other easily digested and assimi- 
lated food can be given sparingly. After three or four 
days small quantities of solid food can be given five 
or six times a day. Patient should drink an abundance 
of water, charged or mineral waters will often be 
found very agreeable. Acid fruits and strong lemon- 
ade are also to be commended. 

While sleep is the one great thing desired yet 
hypnotics or narcotics should not be used to induce it. 
Sleep will usually follow a free movement of the 
bowels, or a prolonged hot bath. Often times wrap- 
ping the patient in cold wet sheets and then rolling 
him up in a blanket will cause him to at once drop 
off into restful slumber. Time was when in order 
to promote sleep, the patient was given 30 grains of 
Bromide of Potassium or 20 grains of Chloral Hydrate 
every four hours; full doses of laudanum were also 
given, as well as hypodermics of Morphine and inhala- 
tions of Chloroform. The use of these or similar 
hypnotics or opiates is not advised. The use of salines, 
tub baths, hot and cold packs, and gentle rubbings 
will accomplish the same purpose and without the 
danger. 

The wild delirium and hallucinations usually last 
only from one to three days when they suddenly dis- 
appear. After this the patient sleeps a great deal and 
his appetite returns. He is then convalescent and 
rapidly recovers if there are no complications. Pneu- 
monia, acute gastritis, acute nephritis and heart failure 
must be watched for and guarded against. These 
often make their appearance after apparent complete 
recovery. The danger of collapse is not great if the 
patient be at all robust to begin with. It may be found 
advisable to administer such heart stimulants as strych- 
nine, digitalis, strophanthus or the ammonium salts, 



132 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

but do not use anything of this character if it can be 
avoided. 

The after treatment consists in nourishment, light 
exercise in the open air, with perhaps some of the 
bitter tonics. As a rule you will find that the best 
tonic is food, elimination, exercise, rest, sunshine, fresh 
air and, don't forget or overlook, the right mental 
attitude. Usually the patient who has passed through 
a siege of tremens is in a very chastened frame of 
mind and he is not so certain that he can stop drinking 
when he chooses. Advantage should be taken of this 
to point out the danger he has passed through and the 
liability of its recurrence, with more serious results. 
He should be counseled to avoid every form of intoxi- 
cants in the future. If he still has any desire for drink 
he should be urged, for his safety's sake, to put him- 
self under such treatment as will remove the craving 
and at the same time will restore his will-power and 
control over himself. Such treatment need not be at 
all strenuous nor need it subject him to any great de- 
gree of inconvenience or annoyance. 



Treatment of Chronic Alcoholism, 
Inebriety or Drunkenness 

One of the essentials in the treatment of Drunken- 
ness is to first understand the nature of the complaint 
you are seeking to cure. You must recognize that 
you have to deal with a diseased body and a perverted 
attitude of mind. You must have a fairly good under- 
standing of the patient's mental and physical condition. 
If you attempt to treat a drinker and lack knowledge 
of the physiological and psychological pathology 
present you will be working entirely in the dark and 
your efforts will be prompted by guess work instead 
of being dictated by science and common sense. There- 
fore, if in your haste to learn how Drunkenness can 
be cured you have neglected to carefully study or 
failed fully to comprehend the preceding sections let 
me urge you to fully master what has gone before so 
that you may be able to carry out the treatment prop- 
erly and intelligently. 

It must be understood, from the very beginning, 
that there is no "magic cure" for Inebriety. There 
is no miraculous potion, no marvelous drug, no in- 
cantation or "spell" which will effect the instantaneous 
transformation from chronic drunkenness to perfect 
sobriety. The "presto-change" methods of the necro- 
mancer do not apply. On the contrary, an intelligent 
idea of the disease and its consequences, a clear under- 
standing of what changes are to be effected by treat- 
ment, a comprehensive knowledge of the various 
means by which these changes can be brought about, 
must one and all be supplemented by a reasonable 
amount of "stick-to-it-ive-ness" in administering the 

133 



134 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

medicines and in carrying out such other measures as 
may be necessary to the treatment. 

If you are seeking some drug which will "im- 
mediately" stop the craving for drink and prevent its 
recurrence, you are looking for something which has 
not been discovered and probably never will be. If, 
however, you are prepared to approach the matter 
from a reasonable standpoint, recognizing the fact that 
a certain amount of effort on your part is required, 
and provided you are willing to put forth this effort, 
then you may confidently expect to get results in the 
great, great majority of curable cases. 

From what has been said in preceding sections 
you know that Drunkenness is a disease and that it is 
not only a "physical" ailment but a "mental" one as 
well. To get the best results requires that both body 
and mind be properly treated. 

It is not to be denied that splendid results have 
been effected by those who treat drunkenness purely 
from the physical side, and the same is true of those 
considering it as being fundamentally a mental ailment. 
But it can readily be seen that methods which treat 
only the body or those who consider only the mental 
phases cannot of necessity prove as efficacious as the 
correct combination of both procedures and that a 
treatment which will produce the maximum amount 
of benefits and the greatest number of cures in the 
highest percentage of cases must be both physical and 
psychical. Before outlining such a treatment it will 
be well to consider some of the methods which are 
ordinarily employed so that, whenever possible, we 
may make use of any measures or means which have 
been found effective. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 135 

Treatment by Moral Suasion 

Moral suasion is undoubtedly the oldest as it is 
also the first means employed to induce a drinker to 
give up his use of intoxicants. Broadly speaking it 
embraces all arguments against drink, entreaties, 
scoldings, rebukes, temperance sermons, lectures and 
crusades. When a mother or father first notices that 
a son has been drinking, some form of moral suasion 
usually is begun immediately. It may be that the 
mother may plead with her son to stop drinking for 
her sake, she may point out its dangers and cite 
examples of its results. The father may scold or 
punish him and threaten still worse if the drinking 
is repeated. His employer may declare he will dis- 
charge him or the minister may be asked to expostu- 
late with him. The same means with variations are 
the ones most commonly employed with the confirmed 
inebriate. The object sought is to have the drinker 
promise or pledge himself to leave drink entirely alone 
and no medical consideration is given to his physical 
or mental condition. 

The appeal to stop drinking is made to the 
patient's intellect and emotions, more particularly to 
the latter. The effects of drink on himself are pic- 
tured as vividly as possible and the attempt is made 
to influence his reason and judgment into declaring 
against it. The trouble which his drinking brings 
upon his family and friends is cited and he is besought 
to cease because of his pride or his affection for those 
involved. His drinking is considered wholly as an 
error of morals ; a vice or bad habit which is entirely 
under his control. He is urged to use his "will power/' 
but seldom or never is told how to employ that potent 
and wonderful force. 



136 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

With some drinkers moral suasion has proven 
very effectual, especially with those we have termed 
"voluntary drinkers" who have no established craving 
for drink but who indulge from desire and not to 
satisfy an indescribable longing or uncontrollable im- 
pulse. To a less degree it has been successful with 
chronic drinkers. Any number of instances can be 
cited where drinkers have taken a pledge not to drink 
again and have kept it inviolate. Oftentimes there 
was and is considerable ceremony attached to the 
taking of the pledge, which is usually made before a 
clergyman or judge, and this fact serves to create an 
impression which will endure when the ordinary 
promise is quickly forgotten. 

Any results tending toward the stoppage of drink 
through moral suasion you will now realize are pro- 
duced by the "suggestion" which comes from the one 
making the plea to the drinker. If the patient is 
readily amenable to suggestion and the craving is not 
strong enough to produce a more powerful counter 
suggestion to his subconsciousness, he will respond 
and as a result will leave drink entirely alone. 

Experience has shown, however, that moral sua- 
sion by itself is effective in only a very small per- 
centage of cases. Compared to the number upon whom 
it is used the results do not warrant placing our de- 
pendence upon it as a means for restoring a confirmed 
drinker to sobriety. True, it can be, and probably 
should be, used in every case, but failure to induce the 
patient to cease drinking through moral suasion is not 
any indication that another method will not prove 
entirely successful. 

I have said that the "curative" results of moral 
suasion were the result of suggestion, but from this 
do not be led into thinking that they are one and the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 137 

same thing. They are similar but not alike. Sugges- 
tion may be said to be moral suasion raised to the 
n th power. Moral suasion may be compared to the 
diffuse rays of the sun which give but gentle warmth, 
while suggestion uses the same rays but focuses them, 
just as a burning glass will focus the sun's rays to a 
point which scorches and burns anything it touches. 
Moral suasion may create a transient desire to be 
cured but suggestion makes such a desire burn deep 
and compels action. 

Treatment by Confinement 

The confinement of drunkards in jails, work- 
houses, "homes" and "retreats" has been and still is 
very commonly practiced. It is done both as a punish- 
ment for getting drunk and also with the idea and 
hope that during a long enforced abstinence all crav- 
ing for drink will be lost and that fear of reconfine- 
ment will prevent drinking being resumed upon release. 

Mere confinement without specific treatment for 
the patient's diseased condition is of but little or no 
value, be the period of incarceration long or short. 
Enforced abstinence does not obliterate the craving 
for alcohol nor does it change the mental attitude of 
the patient towards drink. More often than not it all 
the more firmly fixes his intention of becoming glori- 
ously drunk upon the first opportunity. 

The place of confinement may be a private sani- 
tarium or a jail but the result is the same if treatment 
is not part of the plan. Rare indeed is the drinker 
who has been cured of drunkenness or who has 
stopped drinking because of a jail sentence alone. Yet 
this method of dealing with the drunkard has been 
in force for hundreds of years and unfortunately it 



138 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

is in most instances still the only attempt at reform 
that the civic authorities and the judiciary make. 

Persons found intoxicated in public are com- 
monly arrested and sentenced to serve from five days to 
six months in jail for being drunk and disorderly. 
They are confined as a punishment and not for the 
purpose of being cured, as very few jails are prepared 
to give treatment of this character. There are some 
notable exceptions to this rule, however, and Chicago 
has one of them in the "Bridewell," where, under the 
direction of Dr. C. E. Sceleth, the treatment of pris- 
oners who are alcoholics is carried out with splendid 
success. Only about two per cent of the patients 
treated at the Bridewell do not recover temporarily 
at least. This does not mean that they never drink 
again, for many of them are sent to the hospital more 
than once. This is not at all the fault of the treatment 
but of economic conditions outside the prison. These 
men are the tramps, vagrants and bums of a big city. 
They have no families, no friends, no occupation and 
no object to live soberly. When discharged they go 
back to the same surroundings and discouraging con- 
ditions and as a natural consequence return to drink. 

If these prisoner patients could be kept for a 
sufficient length of time, so that a thorough course in 
character building could be given each one, as well as 
looking after his physical needs, there would be but 
few relapses and most of these men would be made 
again self-respecting and self-supporting. 

For the treatment of this class of patients I am 
thoroughly in accord with the ideas of Dr. T. D. 
Crothers as set forth in his book, "Inebriety/' and 
which I take the liberty of quoting: 

"An ideal institution, which is thoroughly practi- 
cal and will be positively attained in the near future, 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 139 

will be a farm colony in the country, with every facility 
for farm and garden work and light mechanical labor ; 
small, inexpensive dormitories, built about a central 
administrative building, would permit classification and 
grouping of people. 

Full legal power of restraint covering years 
should be given by the courts, and every patient should 
have an opportunity to go out on parole when his 
restoration warrants a resumption of natural, temper- 
ate living. The patient should understand that re- 
straint and control in an institution depends entirely 
on his recognition of the rules and regulations, and 
on his efforts to take advantage of every means used 
to restore his body and mind. 

If he fails in any particular, the restraint will be 
increased and his liberty curtailed, and the duration 
of his confinement lengthened. If he runs away, he 
will be returned and will be held in more strict sur- 
veillance than before. The institution will be con- 
ducted on a military plan, in which baths, exercise, 
medicinal measures and duties of every kind will be 
carried out with great exactness. 

The muscle worker will be required to engage in 
outdoor employment on the farm or in the garden for 
a certain length of time during the day. The brain 
worker and the mechanic will be given some lighten 
work in the workshop, or at some occupation along 
the line of their previous life-work. 

If he refuses to take his part in these duties, his 
confinement will be more strict and his comforts 
diminished. If he perform the duties cheerfully, 
greater liberty will be allowed, more comforts and 
some returns for his services, which may be used to 
increase the luxuries or to help others who are de- 
pendent. 



140 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Occupation should be considered a remedial 
measure of as great value as medicine, daily baths, 

electricity, massage, and such other measures as seem 
to be required by the condition of the patient. In 
addition to this, the evenings are to be occupied with 
lectures, concerts, musicales and ever) measure to 
stimulate and rouse up the palsied brain. 

In this way, both days and evenings would be a 
continuous medicinal hygienic culture school to control 
the disordered impulses, strengthen the nerve energies 
and divert the mind from the past, giving it new im- 
pulses and thoughts for the future. The removal of 
spirits and the active treatment of disturbed conditions 
by every means known to science would be the first 
objective point. Then a re-education and materializa- 
tion of military, medical and psychical measures would 
restore the patient to a normal condition. 

Such institutions should receive the chronic re- 
peaters and those found intoxicated on the streets, 
grading them according to their conditions and capac- 
ity to live normal, rational lives. The military re- 
straint, severe at first, growing less as they show 
capacity to bear freedom. When found incurable, they 
should be placed in a group by themselves and treated 
according to the conditions present. 

Another class less prominent, whose drinking is 
more of the symptomatic and insane type, should be 
treated by the same active measures, given alternate 
liberty and restraint, held in strict accountability for 
the literal fulfillment of every duty, and kept occupied 
during the entire day. when not resting. 

A third class, whose inebriety is of a very recent 
origin, should have special accommodations and par- 
ticular opportunities for rest in suitable surroundings. 

The first class, the incurables, to a very large 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 141 

extent, would be kept in such institutions for their 
lifetime. They would become self-supporting in some 
measure, and at all events the burdens would be lifted 
from the taxpayers and their families, and they could 
be kept in forced conditions of healthy living. 

The second class would be restored after a longer 
or shorter residence, and going out on parole would 
very likely take up responsible positions and live 
normal lives for the future. 

The third class, the transient and temporary 
inebriates, could be checked and restored and sent back 
to healthy, normal living. This latter class, to a very 
large extent, could be cured and prevented from be- 
coming chronic inebriates, or insane, and the work of 
a colony of this class alone would be the highest prac- 
tical kind of preventive medicine. 

The practical results of housing these three classes 
and taking them out of their infectious degenerative 
centers would be a matter of the highest economy 
to the public and to the community, as well as to the 
homes of many persons. 

A colony of this kind would do work equal to an 
insane hospital, not only by checking degenerative 
diseases at the beginning, but preventing crime and 
pauperism, which is certain to follow, as in the present 
conditions. ,, 

Dr. S. Adolphus Knopf goes still further and 
advocates that marriage between alcoholics should be 
prohibited by law and that, in order to prevent the 
begetting of children predisposed to alcoholism and 
the various degenerations found in such children, every 
unredeemable alcoholic, whether male or female, rich 
or poor, shall be renderd sterile. He also holds that 
any individual subject to violent alcoholic mania and 
who is beyond treatment, should be considered as 



142 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

being insane and should be confined in an asylum and 
rendered sexually sterile. 

There is no question but that the trend of the 
times is toward the enforced treatment of chronic 
dependent alcoholics and their confinement for such 
periods as may be necessary. Those of means will 
probably be required by law to take treatment but may 
be allowed to chose the manner and place for them- 
selves as they will not be dependent upon the public 
purse for the expense entailed. 

Treatment by Diet 

Numerous attempts have been made to cure 
drunkenness by various foods and methods of feeding 
and advocates of the several "food cures" claim great 
results accomplished through their means. Investiga- 
tion of the facts would seem to indicate that foods by 
themselves have little merit as a real preventive or 
cure, though they are of considerable assistance when 
employed with other means and methods. Among 
those most commonly used are the following: 
The Full Because a man is less liable to drink when his 
Diet. stomach is full than when it is empty, the eat- 

ing of five to seven meals per day has been advocated 
as a means of preventing a spree, and of ultimate cure. 
With some patients this will prove a help, others will 
not be in the least deterred from drinking by the full- 
ness or emptiness of their stomachs, and with none will 
it prove a cure in the ordinarily accepted sense. 

The value of the full diet as a remedial agent 
depends upon the patient's need of extra or excessive 
nourishment and the ability of his organs to properly 
dispose of it. The body of a drinker is already too 
full of waste products and toxins and the employment 
of a full diet may make a bad matter worse by throw- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 143 

ing more work upon the already over-burdened 
machinery of the body. 
Alcoholized The saturation of the patient's food with 
Food. his usual intoxicant has been quite exten- 

sively employed. This method had its greatest vogue 
in Sweden and Norway, though it has been commonly 
tried in every other country. The patient must of 
necessity be confined in some institution where his 
food and drink supply is under the control of those 
administering the treatment. Everything the patient 
is given to eat is thoroughly soaked with his favorite 
drink, even his water, tea, coffee or other drink is 
impregnated with it. 

The patient, at first, may be delighted with such 
an abundance of his tipple, but in a few days it begins 
to become repugnant to him and it rapidly grows more 
and more repellant. He is soon filled with digust and 
loathing at the sight or smell of the liquor seasoned 
food and cannot bear even the thought of drinking the 
liquor of which he has had such a surfeit. 

A percentage of those thus treated receive such 
a vivid and lasting mental impression that they remain 
total abstainers thereafter. The number however is 
comparatively small, the most of them can and do 
begin to drink within a short time after their release. 
The method is not one which is truly curative and is 
not in high favor with those who wish to obtain the 
best results. 
The Fruit The eating of raw fruits and vegetables to 
Cure. overcome an inclination to drink is one of the 

most common of the food cures. Oranges, lemons, 
apples, grapes, raisins and melons are the usual fruits, 
while raw tomatoes, carrots, onions and even raw 
potatoes have their advocates. 



144 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

The eating of an orange, a lemon, an apple or 
any other particular fruit or vegetable will not of itself 
remove and cure the craving for drink but they are 
great auxiliaries to other medicines. The fruits are 
beneficial in inebriety because of their acidity and 
cathartic action. They afford temporary relief from 
the craving by furnishing something for the stomach 
juices to act upon, and at the same time they are the 
means by which a powerful auto-suggestion against 
taking a drink can be impressed upon the sub-con- 
sciousness. 

In considering the various means of treatment, it 
must be borne in mind that in most cases of inebriety 
the patient's mental attitude greatly influences the 
effect of the remedies. Drunkenness, as before stated, 
is the final outcome of a "suggestion" ; and this same 
mental force is one of the greatest and most effective 
means we have of overcoming drunkenness. There- 
fore if a drinker firmly believes that eating an apple 
three or four times a day will check or cure his drink- 
ing, it will undoubtedly do so for him, though it may 
prove ineffectual with a thousand others who had not 
the faith in its virtues. 

Lemons and oranges however are most efficient 
helps in acute alcoholic poisoning, for the sore, fevered, 
distressed stomach after a spree, and in alcoholic 
dyspepsia. The clear juice may be taken or lemonade 
or orangeade may be used. The effect on the patient 
is the best guide for the method of employment. 

The vegetarian diet, the all meat diet, the raw 
food diet and a thousand and one others have their 
upholders, but it will be impossible and likewise useless 
to discuss them further as the general nature of each 
of them is similar to those already herein mentioned. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 145 

Treatment by Baths 

Baths of various kinds have long been employed 
in the treatment of intoxicated individuals for the 
purpose of cutting short a spree or averting its un- 
pleasant and depressing after effects. Their thera- 
peutic worth, however, goes far beyond this, as they 
are of unquestioned value in both acute and chronic 
alcoholic conditions. They will also be found among 
the best preventives of periodic drink attacks, espe- 
cially where the usual outbreak is preceded by symp- 
toms indicative of what is coming. 

Their effect in general is to increase the elimina- 
tion of toxins and waste products through the skin, 
to counteract alcohol's overstimulation of the heart, to 
equalize blood pressure and relieve congestion, to re- 
lax the tension and irritation of the nervous system, 
to induce soothing and refreshing sleep. 

The Turkish bath is one of the favorite means 
employed by many drinkers to "sober up" quickly or, 
as many of them express it, "to boil the whiskey 
out." When taking this bath the bather is placed in 
a room heated to 150° to 170° F. and allowed to 
remain from ten to thirty minutes or until he is 
perspiring profusely. He is then given a hot shower, 
which is gradually cooled. A vigorous rubbing and 
massage follows, after which he is put in a cool room, 
lightly covered and allowed to sleep as long as he 
desires. 

There are such variations in the above routine as 
will suit the bather's condition or fancy. If a previous 
experience has shown a bather that he does not com- 
mence to perspire freely in the hot room he is given 
a hot shower, followed by a cold one before going into 
the hot room. Drinking several glasses of water, 



146 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

either hot or cool, also aids in quickening the activity 
of the sweat glands. An active purge by salines or 
an enema of hot water before going into the hot room 
will be found to hasten and increase perspiration. 
After the hot room the bather may spend five to ten 
minutes in a closed room filled with hot steam. Then 
follow the showers and massage, after which the 
bather usually desires to rest and sleep. 

Nearly the same benefits can be 'obtained at home 
by the use of a good bath cabinet. This is a small 
box-like affair about four feet square and high enough 
to permit the bather to sit on a chair with his head 
projecting through an aperture in the top. Ordinarily 
the cabinet is made of a wooden frame, which can be 
folded to economize space, covered with oilcloth or 
rubberized cloth of some sort. The top is covered with 
the same material but is made in overlapping sections 
with an opening for the head and neck. The whole 
cabinet is made as air tight as possible. The heat 
is furnished by a rather large sized alcohol burner 
placed under the chair. The heat generated is con- 
siderable and the patient perspires very freely. A 
steam bath can be had by filling a tin dish with water 
and placing it over the burner where it will soon be 
converted into steam. A bath cabinet has the advan- 
tage of keeping the head out of the heat and per- 
mitting the bather to breathe fresh air. 

A marked improvement on the hot room and the 
ordinary bath cabinet is the "radiant light cabinet." 
This is a cabinet of about the same dimensions as the 
one above described, perhaps a little larger, but it is 
constructed of wood and lined with mirrors or some 
other highly reflecting surface. The heat is furnished 
by incandescent electric globes of from fifty candle 
power up. The globes are arranged in series so that 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 147 

the heat can be gradually increased or diminished or 
applied more strongly to various points. 

Perspiration in this bath starts very quickly and is 
very profuse. In addition to increasing elimination 
by virtue of the rapid and intense sweating, the light 
itself seems to penetrate the tissues with beneficial 
effect. Various colored globes have been tried upon 
the theory that different colored rays will have curative 
effects all their own and the ultra violet ray of the 
arc light is supposed to have a better effect than the 
ordinary incandescent light commonly employed. 

The effect of the light bath is not only soothing 
but exhilarating as well, as very seldom is there any 
depressing after effects as may be the case with hot 
air. Cold or warm showers and rubbings should 
follow as with the Turkish bath. 

Periodical drinkers will very often overcome the 
impulse to go on a spree if, when they feel the desire 
to drink coming on, they will take a vigorous course 
of the saline cathartics and some form of the sweat 
bath followed by showers, massage and rest. Hot 
water baths taken if necessary two or three times a 
day will also be found very effective in aborting an 
attack. Active eliminative measures should be begun 
by the patient at the first warning symptom and faith- 
fully carried out. 

Different forms of electric currents are also em- 
ployed in treating inebriety, more especially where 
there are complications. As far as known electricity 
has no specific action on the craving for drink but it 
has its use as an auxiliary or as a means for impressing 
a suggestion. Vibration is also used as a comple- 
mental measure, and as such is valuable, but need not 
be at all essential to a cure. This same is true of a 
great many of the measures which have been men- 



148 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

tioned. They are all helps but they are not all abso- 
lutely necessary, so no one need be deterred from 
undertaking the treatment of inebriety just because 
they may lack or be unable to employ some one or 
several of the means mentioned herein as having been 
used with success by someone else. 

Treatment by Suggestion 

Suggestion as an active and effective therapeutic 
agent in drunkenness and the drug addictions, is just 
beginning to receive the attention and consideration it 
merits. Physicians who specialize in the treatment of 
disordered mental states and nervous conditions have 
long employed suggestion with surprisingly successful 
results, but the general practitioner and the public are 
only commencing to realize its value, potency and the 
simplicity with which it is put into operation. 

Nearly every physician has more or less of an 
idea of "mental therapeutics" and all of them will 
admit its value, but only a few have devoted serious 
thought to its scientific and systematic application. 
Most efforts at the use of suggestion go no further 
than the giving of advice. The patient is told that 
he must not keep thinking of this or that illness, that 
he must get into the habit of thinking and doing bright, 
cheerful things, etc., etc., but only rarely is he told 
how to form these habits of mind and body. Thus 
one of the most powerful forces for the correction of 
wrong habits of mind and numberless physical ills is 
permitted to lie idle because of lack of system and 
persistence in its use. 

As has been before stated, some of the common 
principles of suggestion are used in all forms of moral 
suasion, and even when crudely or unskillfully em- 
ployed they are often extremely effective. In most of 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 149 

these cases those who give the suggestions do not 
know anything of the Law of Suggestion or the means 
by which the mind is influenced to action. They 
unwittingly put the right causes into motion and re- 
sults must follow as a matter of course. The fact that 
cures follow such unconscious and unscientific use of 
suggestion is surely proof of its curative value in 
inebriety and gives you some idea of what may be 
accomplished when systematically employed by some- 
one who knows something about the correct manner 
of using it. 

If any doubt can be had of the value of sugges- 
tion in the treatment of drunkenness it quickly will 
be dispelled if one will but watch its effects. We can 
always argue for or against the working out of a 
theory but we cannot dispute results which have 
actually taken place. For this reason one of the most 
convincing proofs of the efficacy of suggestion is to 
note the fact that the one time hard drinker after fully 
embracing the faith and following the teaching of 
Christian Science becomes a teetotaler in a very short 
time. 

It will at once be denied by every follower of 
this faith that suggestion has anything to do with the 
reformation of a drinker and it will be asserted that 
the change is brought about by the correction of his 
"mental error." I heartily agree that perfectly cor- 
recting the "mental error/' which every inebriate has 
in regard to his drinking, is more than likely to cure 
the whole trouble, but the overcoming of that mental 
error and the changing of his habit of thought is 
accomplished by suggestion, and auto-suggestion, and 
by a change of environment and companions and by 
nothing else. This will be demonstrated to your com- 



150 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

plete satisfaction by following a typical case through 
the various stages of change. 

Let us say that a hard drinker, of a reasonable 
degree of mentality, is through one means or another 
induced to attend an "experience meeting" at a Chris- 
tian Science church. He may be skeptical or his mind 
be open to conviction. Upon entering the church he 
finds himself in an atmosphere of rest and quiet, there 
is also a certain solemnity and impressiveness pervad- 
ing the place, and his whole surroundings tend to place 
him in a receptive mood. After a prayer, a short read- 
ing, usually from the bible, and the singing of hymns 
in which all join, the members are invited to relate 
personal experiences of their being cured of some 
ailment or of having derived some temporal benefit 
through their faith. 

Perhaps some man, with whom he is acquainted, 
describes the time when he was a drunkard without 
money and without standing, and states that he has 
been restored to sobriety and prosperity through Chris- 
tian Science. He hears a number of similar state- 
ments from those who have actually "been there them- 
selves," and he sees that they are now w r ell dressed 
and prosperous. He begins to wonder what there is 
to it and what the same thing would do for him. The 
positive assertions made by those testifying are so 
many potent suggestions which produce their first 
effect by making him begin to "think things over." 
After the service is finished he is spoken to by different 
members and assured that he will be welcomed on 
any future visit. He leaves with a new impression 
and usually with the thought that "there must be 
something in it after all." 

A little later he attends another meeting and he 
hears further testimonies, meets more of the members, 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 151 

and he begins to like the idea of obtaining spiritual 
and temporal rewards right here and now instead of 
at some vaguely indefinite time in some future state. 
If he keeps on attending the meetings he is given 
explanatory literature to read and is impressively told 
that though he may not understand everything at first, 
yet if he will have sincere faith and follow directions 
it will all be made clear to him as he progresses. 

During this time he may begin to taper off in his 
drinking, or if he finds it difficult to do so he con- 
sults a "Science Practitioner" or mental healer and 
asks for help. He is then told his desire to drink is 
only a "mental error," and that because drunkenness 
is not Truth it cannot exist. He is advised that he 
must with faith and confidence deny the evil and 
affirm the good. By this is meant that whenever the 
impulse to drink manifests itself he must immediately 
assert to himself that he has no desire to drink and 
that there is no such thing as drunkenness. He is 
also told that at a certain time he is to put all thoughts 
out of his mind and "go into the silence" and at that 
time the practitioner will give him "absent" or tele- 
pathic treatment for the mental error. It is impressed 
upon him that following these measures will insure the 
loss of all craving and desire for drink. Now, pro- 
vided he carries out the instructions given and keeps 
up his attendance at church, he will lose the craving 
and his use of intoxicants will cease. 

There is no disputing the fact that a cure has 
been accomplished and without the use of medicines, 
but it is equally true that from first to last suggestion 
and auto-suggestion have been most skillfully, artisti- 
cally and effectively employed. The surroundings in 
the church, the testimonials of those who had been 
cured, the appearance of prosperity of the members, 



152 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

and all the other "stage settings'' were suggestions of 
the most forceful type. Now added to this is the con- 
stant assertion made from the pulpit, by the members 
and in the literature that if he has a strong and abid- 
ing faith that he will be helped, he will receive in 
accordance with his faith. The practitioner impresses 
upon him that "affirmation of good and denial of 
evil" will free him from his craving. This is nothing 
more or less than auto-suggestion, backed up by a 
blind, unreasoning faith that results will follow. The 
same thing occurs with "absent treatment" ; the patient 
firmly believes that at the specified hour a change will 
take place and because of this faith and the auto- 
suggestion the change does follow in so far as the 
mind can control the body. 

You may give any name you choose to the fore- 
going processes, or ascribe the results effected to any 
source you wish, but you will not change the facts. 
"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" and 
if you care to you may say that a drinker who goes 
through the above has been cured by a direct inter- 
position of Providence, but the fact remains that the 
psychologist and mental therapeutist employs the same 
means, in the same way and gets the same results, but 
he terms the force he employs Suggestion, and holds 
that it is a natural and not a supernatural agent. 

Please do not imagine that I intend one word of 
disparagement against the Christian Science faith or 
any of its members, quite the contrary. I have the 
highest admiration for the practical work it accom- 
plishes for both mind and body, and for the splendid 
personnel of its membership, among whom I number 
many of my closest friends. I only wish to emphasize 
and point out the fact that they are employing, under 
another name, a force which has infinite possibilities 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 153 

in the scientific treatment of inebriety and allied ail- 
ments and I hope by calling attention to living proofs 
of its efficacy to arouse both the medical fraternity and 
the laity to a true sense of its value. 

While radical cures are common through the use 
of suggestion alone, and with some types of drinkers 
it is about the only means which can be employed, yet 
as a general rule suggestion and medicinal treatment 
should be combined in order that the best and quickest 
results may be obtained. There is nothing to prevent 
using suggestion without medicines or medicines with- 
out suggestion, but as neither conflicts with the other, 
failure to employ both lessens the patient's chances for 
recovery. 

In a previous chapter the underlying principles 
of suggestion have been explained and a little further 
on an outline of the method of employing these prin- 
ciples will be given so that any one can intelligently 
use them in combination with such medicinal measures 
as may be required. 

Treatment by Drugs 

The first institution for the treatment of drunken- 
ness, considered from the standpoint of its being a 
disease and curable by the use of drugs, was founded 
by Dr. Edward J. Turner, at Binghamton, N. Y., in 
1864. In common with all pioneers in scientific fields, 
Dr. Turner encountered a storm of opposition from 
both physicians and laity. Instead of being given the 
support which his self-sacrificing efforts merited, many 
attempts were made to belittle and discredit the im- 
portance of his claims and labors, but before his death, 
which occurred in 1889, Dr. Turner had the satisfac- 
tion of seeing the truth of his contentions demon- 
stated and of knowing that thousands of drunkards 



154 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

had been redeemed to lives of sobriety and thousands 
of others, yet unborn, would live to bless his name. 

In 1870 a number of physicians and other inter- 
ested persons formed a society called The Association 
for the Study of Inebriety, and from that date drunk- 
enness began to be treated along scientific lines. At 
that time but little was known of the real disease of 
drunkenness. Its symptoms had not been minutely 
observed, or their meaning considered; its pathology 
was but little understood and the true inwardness of 
its effects on the mentality was comparatively un- 
known. Patients were considered as being on the 
borderland of insanity, pledges and moral suasion 
were ignored in the treatment and dependence was 
placed upon personal restraint, various medicines, 
baths, diet, etc. 

Progress was slow, as is the case with every re- 
form of great magnitude, but it was also sure. Grad- 
ually physicians began to understand the true nature 
of drunkenness and to evolve an effective treatment. 
Today the disease of drunkenness is well understood 
and its successful treatment and complete cure by 
medical means is an established fact. 
The End Sought The end sought by all drug treatments 
in All Treatments is first an elimination of the alcoholic 
by Drugs. toxins or poisons present in the system 

at the time of beginning treatment; the removal of the 
constant or periodical "craving" for intoxicants; a 
sustaining and restoration to health of the diseased 
nervous system; a re-establishment of normal func- 
tion to the various organs affected by alcohol, and the 
creation of a distaste for intoxicants which will pre- 
vent returning to drink. The "mental attitude," pres- 
ent and future, of the patient, with some few excep- 
tions, is not given near the attention it deserves. With 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 155 

most methods of treatment drugs and other purely 
physical means are relied upon entirely to effect the 
result desired. Needless to say, any treatment which 
places dependence solely upon physical means cannot 
prove as completely effectual as one which intelligently 
treats both the mental and physical defects which are 
present. 

You Cannot Success- A S reat man y differ ent drugs have 
fully Prescribe been used in the treatment of 

for Yourself. inebriety, and I will mention those 

which experience has proven to be the most effective. 
Nearly every physician or sanitarium uses some com- 
bination of these medicines in conjunction with other 
methods, also herein explained. But in this connection 
I wish to caution the reader who is not a physician 
against any attempt to prescribe for himself or any- 
one else any combination of the medicines mentioned. 
In a very large percentage of cases the patient, attend- 
ant, or some member of the family is fully competent 
to take or administer the treatment without the per- 
sonal supervision of a physician but lack of medical 
knowledge totally unfits them to select such medicines 
as that particular case requires. 

While all cases of inebriety are alike in their gen- 
eral aspects, yet each individual has his own peculiari- 
ties which must be taken into consideration if the best 
results are to follow. Prescribing medicines for one- 
self, when you are not familiar with their effects or 
just what you wish them to accomplish, is very much 
like ordering a suit of clothes without giving any 
size. You might possibly be fitted but the chances 
are very much against it. 



156 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Treatment for ^ patient is on a spree at the time 

Clearing the treatment for chronic inebriety is to 

Body of Alcohol, be begun, he is first sobered by em- 
ploying some of the various means described in the 
chapter on acute alcoholic conditions. Then after he 
has been allowed to rest for a day or two the treat- 
ment for the removal of the craving, and quieting of 
his nervous system and the building up of his powers 
of resistance is commenced. This part of the treat- 
ment is not begun when the patient is drunk. 

For the purpose of securing maximum elimination 
recourse is had to various laxatives and purgatives, 
especially those which produce free watery stools. 
Calomel in % grain doses given every hour during 
the day, until two to three grains have been taken, 
and that followed the next morning by a Seidlitz 
powder, Rochelle or Epsom salts. This to be repeated 
every other day for three or four times, as is necessary. 
In some cases it will be found advisable to give 5 to 
10 grains of sodium salicylate an hour or two before 
the use of calomel is begun. For securing elimination 
through the kidneys potassium acetate and potassium 
citrate are often used. These drugs also aid elimina- 
tion through the skin by increasing perspiration. For 
this purpose there are also employed pilocarpine, 
ammonium acetate and ammonium citrate. Sweet 
spirits of nitre has also been used with good effect. 
Hot packs and various forms of hot water, hot air 
and hot steam baths are commonly employed in all 
sanitariums to induce the maximum skin elimination 
and also for the soothing effect they have upon the 
nervous system. 

Various Treatments After some . form of Preparatory 
for the Removal treatment, similar to the above, will 

of the Craving. follow medication for the removal 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 157 

of the craving and the upbuilding of the patient. A 
great number of different remedies are used for this 
purpose and each physician treating inebriety places 
the greatest dependence and value upon the particular 
combination which has been most successful in his 
hands. It would be impossible to say which treatment 
is the ne plus ultra, as all are equally highly spoken 
of by their advocates and the results obtained in any 
given number of cases seem to be about the same. 

McBride, of London, advocates the use of hypo- 
dermic injections of a sterilized solution of strych- 
nine nitrate, 4 grains to an ounce of water, and a 
sterilized solution of atropine sulphate, one grain to 
an ounce of water. Three injections are made during 
twenty-four hours, being given one-half hour after 
each of the three principal meals. The dose of 
strychnine is increased rather rapidly until at the end 
of the first week 1/30 of a grain is being given at 
each injection. The atropine is pushed until the dry 
tongue and throat and the dilated pupils are noticed. 
Having reached the full dosage, it is continued 
throughout the second week. 

In connection with the hypodermics the follow- 
ing mixture is given six times a day, during the first 
two weeks of treatment. 

Liq. cinchona m. 10 

Liq. gentian m. 15 

Liq. rhei m. 2 

Liq. capsicum m. 1 

Atropine sulphate sol m. 2 

Strychnine nitrate sol m. 2 

Glycerine q. s. 

Aqua to oz. 1 

Give in half a glass of water, 



158 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

The above is given in connection with the hypo- 
dermics in about the following order : Medicine at 8 
and 10:30 a. m., 12:30, 3, 6:30 and 9:30 p. m. Injec- 
tions at 9:15 a. m., 2 and 8 p. m. Attention should 
be given to diet and such measures employed as may 
be necessary to control any local conditions which may 
arise. 

With the beginning of the third week, if the 
progress of the patient has been satisfactory, the dose 
of atropine is rapidly reduced in the injections and 
omitted therefrom entirely after the sixteenth day. 
At the same time the tincture of capsicum is with- 
drawn from the mixture. 

The modified injection and mixture is continued 
during the fourth week. At the beginning of the fifth 
week the atropine is also withdrawn from the mixture, 
which is now given four times a day instead of six, 
otherwise the treatment is administered as before. 

During the sixth week the strychnine injections 
are given only in the morning and evening and the 
dose rapidly reduced to nothing and discontinued at 
the last of the week. At the beginning of this week 
the cinchona is also withdrawn from the mixture, 
which is now given three times a day. 

This is the general routine of medication em- 
ployed by McBride, to which are of course added 
such other measures as may be found necessary in 
individual cases. 

Dr. Alexander Lambert uses in the Bellevue Hos- 
pital in New York an entirely different combination 
of drugs, the formula for which and outline of treat- 
ment having been furnished to him by Mr. Charles 
B. Towns. He employs a 15 per cent tincture of 
belladonna, and the fluid extract of xanthoxylum 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 159 

(prickly ash) and the fluid extract of hyoscyamus 
mixed in the following proportions: 

Tincture of belladonna (15%) oz. ii 

Fluid extract of xanthoxylum. 

Fluid extract of hyoscyamus aa oz. i 

For the preliminary eliminative treatment he em- 
ploys the compound cathartic pill of the Pharmacopoeia 
which contains: 

Compound extract of colocynth gr. 1%. 

Resin of jalap gr. y s 

Calomel gr. 1 

Gamboge gr. % 

Also the official vegetable cathartic pills : 

Compound extract of colocynth gr. 1 

Extract of hyoscyamus gr. y 2 

Resin of jalap gr. y 3 

Extract of leptandra gr. ^ 

Resin of podophyllum gr. % 

Oil of peppermint m. J4 

To this Dr. Lambert adds: 

Oleoresin of capsicum gr. 1/10 



2 



Ginger gr. 

Croton oil m. 1/25 

He also uses five-grain capsules of blue mass in 
connection with whichever of the above pills is em- 
ployed. 



160 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

The treatment is begun by giving four of the 
compound cathartic pills and 5 grains of blue mass. 
An enema of hot soapy water is also given to thor- 
oughly clean out the lower bowel. When the cathartics 
begin to act the use of the belladonna, xanthoxylum 
and hyoscyamus mixture is commenced. Beginning 
with 6 to 8 drops, given every hour, the dose is 
increased 2 drops every six hours until 14 to 16 drops 
are being given every hour. The dose is not increased 
above 16 drops. The mixture is given in this way 
until the effects of the belladonna are seen. 

The signs of belladonna intoxication are dilated 
pupils, dryness of the throat, sometimes difficulty in 
swallowing, and a flushed face, which is peculiar in 
that the flush is over each cheek bone while the skin 
at the corners of the nose and about the angles of the 
mouth may be unduly white. The skin may be hot 
and dry. In persons who are very susceptible to this 
drug an active, talkative delirium may occur. Some- 
times a rash develops which spreads over the entire 
body. The pulse is rapid and the respirations quick- 
ened. There is practically no danger whatever from 
these symptoms as they are very transitory and pass 
away quickly as soon as the belladonna is withdrawn. 

When the above symptoms are noticed the use 
of the mixture is stopped until the signs have sub- 
sided, when it is begun again in 8 drop doses and 
given as before. With very susceptible patients one 
may have to recommence with 4 or 5 drop doses. 

Twelve hours after beginning the use of the mix- 
ture another cathartic of pills and blue mass is given. 
The number of pills used is governed by the severity 
of the previous action. After this second dose of 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 161 

cathartics has acted, if the patient begins to show 
green, mucous stools he is given an ounce of castor 
oil, which will produce a liquid green stool, composed 
of mucous and bile, and the treatment is then ceased. 
If, however, the green stool does not begin to appear 
at this time the treatment is continued for another 
twelve hours and the cathartic again given, and as 
soon as the green stool is seen the castor oil is given. 
In some cases it has been found necessary to continue 
the above for one or two or more twelve hour periods. 

During above treatment the patient is usually 
given, every 4 hours, a 1/60 to 1/30 of strychnine, or 
some other heart stimulant. With young and vigorous 
patients no liquor at all is given but older ones or 
those in poor physical condition are given an ounce 
or two of whiskey, in milk, four times during the first 
twenty-four hours. During the second twenty-four 
only two doses of whiskey are given and after that 
not at all. 

After treatment the patient will usually be languid 
and relaxed but without any craving for alcohol. They 
may be restless and sleepless for the next two or three 
days and are given such medication as will assist them 
in gaining rest and quiet. A non-alcoholic tonic is 
then given for a week or two. The diet during treat- 
ment is regulated by circumstances. After the active 
treatment it should be abundant, but simple and easily 
digested and assimilated. 

Space forbids the enumeration of all the various 
drugs which have been employed in inebriety but I 
shall briefly mention a few of them so that their gen- 
eral character may be recognized and from them any 
physician can modify a formula to suit the require- 



162 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

ments of any certain patient. The two following have 
been extensively used: 

Chloride of gold and sodium 

Ammonium chloride 

Atropine 

Strychnine nitrate 

Fluid extract cinchona comp. 

Fluid extract hydrastis 

Fluid extract lupulin 

Glycerine 

Tinct. Cardamon comp. 



Chloride of gold and sodium 

Ammonium chloride 

Strychnine nitrate 

Atropine 

Fluid extract cinchona comp. 

Fluid extract cocoa 

Glycerine 

Water q. s. 

Chloride of gold and sodium was at one time 
thought to have a specific action in removing the drink 
craving and there were a great many so-called "Gold 
Cures" established in all parts of the country. The 
chief value of the gold chloride was from an adver- 
tising standpoint. It was "catchy" and patients 
thought it must possess some out of the ordinary 
merit, and it also enabled its users to charge more 
for the treatment because of the asserted great cost 
of the medicines employed. 

As a matter of medical fact the chloride of gold 
and sodium has very little if indeed any medicinal 
value in the treatment of inebriety. It is a rather 
unstable compound and in the body it is very likely 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 163 

to split up into metallic gold and common salt. Gold 
is absolutely inert and has no medical value and the 
action of ordinary salt is too well known to require 
comment. 

A variation of the two preceding formulas is 
the following, which also has proven of value. The 
dose is a teaspoonful every two hours while patient 
is awake. The treatment is continued from four to 
six weeks as required. 

Atropine sulph J4 g r - 

Strychnine nitrate 1 gr- 

Tinct. capsicum 2 dr. 

Fl. ext. cocoa 1 oz. 

Fl. ext. avena sativa 1 oz. 

Fl. ext. cinchona comp 3 oz. 

Glycerine 1 oz. 

Aqua dis. q. s. to 8 oz. 

Another formula at one time, and to some extent 
still, commonly used is : 

Fluid extract cinchona rubra 
Cinchonidine sulphate 
Quinidia 

I have never employed this combination but it 

would seem from the ingredients that one could not 

expect from it more than the ordinary well known 

effects of quinine. 

Homeopathic Spiritus glandium quercus, a distillation 

Methods and claimed by homeopaths to be a specific in 

Medicines. of the acorns of the white oak, has been 

inebriety. Dr. J. C. Burnell says that the use of the 

drug, with the avoidance of all meat diet and the free 



164 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

use of buttermilk, oatmeal and fruit diet, enables the 
inebriate and tippler to control their passion for strong 
drink and to abstain altogether or drink in moderation, 
as they choose. 

I have tried to test the efficacy of this drug, but 
as it is unofficial I have never succeeded in obtaining 
a preparation which I was certain was properly pre- 
pared. The results obtained by me were unsatisfac- 
tory, but whether this was due to the drug being incor- 
rectly manufactured, or to other causes, I cannot state. 

I am not familiar with the methods employed by 
homeopaths in the treatment of inebriety, but Galli- 
vardin in his Homeopathic Treatment of Alcoholism 
advocates a specific remedy for each type of drinker 
and another drug for the various combinations of 
mental symptoms exhibited while intoxicated. He 
advocates giving one dose of each drug, indicated by 
homeopathic theory, and then permitting that one dose 
to remain in the system and work for weeks and 
months. 

For various types of drinkers he advocates the 
following : Nux Vomica, lachesis, causticum, sulphur, 
calcarea carbonica, hepar sulphuris, arsenicum album, 
mercurius vivus, petroleum, opium, staphisagra, 
conium maculatum, Pulsatilla and magnesia carbonica. 
The character of the drinker determines the drug to 
be used, as for example : 

"Nux vomica: — Violent people, often cross, and 
whom sorrows or cares lead to drink as a means of 
forgetting, and who spit frequently; or mild-tempered 
people, kind and affectionate in their ordinary condi- 
tion, who, while drinking, become brutal even to 
striking, insulting, sometimes weeping. Tendency to 
jealousy, to envy, to suicide by shooting or stabbing, 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 165 

before and during drunkenness. Inclination to sad- 
ness, or to great genital excitement during drunken- 
ness. Easily made drunk by a small quantity of alco- 
holic drink. Longing for red wine, white wine, beer, 
absinthe, rum; persons inclined to get drunk for lack 
of anything else to do; neurotic men, and women 
addicted to drunkenness during or after pregnancy. 
Licentious, but only in imagination; still sometimes 
really immoral ; mania for refusing treatment even in 
urgent cases. Sometimes thieving and shrewd; in- 
clined to gamble, spending their entire wealth little 
by little. Spending through ostentation ; close toward 
his family, open-handed to strangers, avoiding any 
society but his own family. 

Causticum: — Fussy, quarrelsome, cheating, much 
inclined to be moved to tears before and after drink; 
very great genital overexcitement before and during 
drunkenness. Desire for brandy and wine. Indicated 
for persons who have lost their loved ones. Adults 
lacking in common sense. Great indifference. Some- 
times inclined to theft. Tobacco users. Unable to 
stand continence. Young girls burning with the desire 
of marrying. Spendthrifts. 

Hepar sulphuris: — Persons who are not affec- 
tionate, always dissatisfied, high-tempered, easily 
angered, even to homicide. Inclined to be criminal. 
Needing wine to be able to work mentally. 

Mercurius vivis: — Always dissatisfied with every- 
thing, everybody, and themselves. Inclined to caries 
of the teeth, to engorgement of the gums, to salivation, 
neuralgia, diarrhoea, dysentery, intestinal worms. 
Great gamblers. Sometimes spending freely and some- 
times close-fisted. Spending day by day what they 
earn. Hard to get along with and weak-minded. Hav- 



166 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

ing diseases which have been palliated rather than 
cured. 

Conium maculatum: — People who drink to "brace 
up," because they feel extremely lonesome, cold and 
chilly. Persons who cannot stand continence. Great 
indifference. Intelligence not as yet thoroughly de- 
veloped. Adults lacking in reason, like children. 
Paralytic weakness of the lower spine, and especially 
of the lower legs, inclined to paraplegia. 

Pulsatilla: — People who imagine they strengthen 
their stomachs by drinking, and whose digestive 
powers are really insufficient. Sad while they are 
drunk. Desire for cider. Chlorotic women and girls 
who drink for the purpose of gaining strength. 
Jealous, and still more envious, inclined to hate. 
Spendthrifts through ostentation. Timid and even 
cowardly." 

For the various mental symptoms which appear 
during drunkenness he advocates belladonna, can- 
tharadies, china, coffea, hyoscyamus, ignatia, phos- 
phorus, stramonium and veratrum. These are admin- 
istered in the 3rd, 6th, 12th or 30th dilution, and are 
given as indicated. 

As an example of their employment the following 
symptoms are given, and the drugs used for each. 

"Convulsive form of drunkenness, with violent 
contortions of the limbs, of the body, of the head: 
Nux vomica, belladonna. 

Jealousy: Nux vomica, lachesis, Pulsatilla, stap- 
hisagra. 

Fury for striking: Nux vomica, hepar sulph., 
hyoscyamus. 

Fury for destroying everything : Veratrum, bella- 
donna. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 167 

Speaking ceaselessly : Lachesis, causticum, hepar 
sulph., petroleum, magnesium carbonate. 

Yelling, shouting : Stramonium, hyoscyamus, 
ignatia, causticum. 

Insulting : Nux vomica, hepar sulph., petroleum. 

Complaining, dissatisfied ; before, during and after 
intoxication : Hydrastis canadensis, nux vomica, 
causticum, lachesis." 

Never having seen this method of treatment 
thoroughly tried I cannot state from experience or 
observation what results have followed its use, but 
from my general knowledge I am inclined to believe 
that other lines of medication will prove more satis- 
factory. 
Danger of Using Nothing has been said of the various 
Hypnotics and sedatives and hypnotics which may be 

Narcotics in Treat- required when persistent insomnia is 
mg Drunkenness. present or when the patient is in a 
highly nervous condition, delirious or maniacal. For 
the purpose of quieting the patient and inducing sleep 
the bromides, chloral, hyoscin, sulphonal, trional, stra- 
monium, hyoscyamus and the like are commonly em- 
ployed. 

Extreme care must be taken in using narcotics, 
especially the "habit" forming ones, and most of them 
tend in that direction. They should never be employed 
except upon the advice and under the administration 
of a physician, who should never inform the patient 
or his friends that he is giving a narcotic or hint at 
the name or nature of the drug. If this precaution 
is neglected there may follow the acquirement of a 
drug habit more vicious than the initial inebriety. 

The class of patients who will be treated at home 
seldom or never will require extreme sedatives or 
hypnotics, and in a sanitarium or hospital, sleep and 



168 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

nervous relaxation can better be obtained through 
elimination, wet packs, cold showers, hot baths and 
other similar measures. These leave no depressing 
after effects, the sleep obtained is natural and refresh- 
ing and there is no danger of forming a dangerous 
drug habit. 

No Absolute So far as is known there is no drug or 
Specific Yet combination of drugs which is absolutely 
Discovered. specific in removing the craving for drink. 
By this is meant that the same identical treatment will 
not prove curative in all cases. Taking for example one 
hundred patients and administering to each of them the 
combination you have found most effective, you might 
have the most favorable results with sixty while for 
the remainder the treatment would have to be changed. 
The addition of one or two ingredients, or their 
omission, oftentimes makes a radical difference in 
the results. 

Which ones will require a modification of the gen- 
eral line of treatment can only be determined by noting 
the results obtained from it. If they are satisfactory, 
well and good; if not, the cause must be ascertained 
and such alteration made as will produce results. 



An Outline of a General Method of 

Home Treatment for the Patient 

Who Wishes to Stop Drinking 

It will be understood that in a book of this char- 
acter it is out of the question to attempt to give speci- 
fic instructions for a treatment which will apply ex- 
actly to each and every case. The very best that any- 
one can do, without special information pertaining to 
each individual, is to describe such general measures 
as will prove effective with a general average of 
patients. Treatment for any particular case can only 
be prescribed by the medical adviser after a careful 
consideration of such conditions as necessitate special 
medication and attention. 

For the above reasons it is not to be expected 
that the measures herein described are going to be 
successful with each drinker, though they can be first 
tried by all who desire to undertake treatment with- 
out further advice from a physician. With a large 
percentage the thorough carrying out of the instruc- 
tions given will be followed by a radical cure, with 
freedom from the craving or necessity of using any 
form of intoxicants. With others the results may not 
be so pronounced which would indicate the necessity 
for a change in the medication and method of hand- 
ling. These latter should at once place their cases in 
the hands of a physician who is skilled and experi- 
enced in the treatment of Inebriety, for the special 
attention which they require. 

In outlining the following treatment it is as- 
sumed that we are dealing with a drinker who really 

169 



170 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

wishes to be cured and who has fully determined to 
do all in his power to overcome his drinking habits. 
It is not enough for him to say he wishes to be cured, 
and at the same time do everything which can be done 
to prevent results. Some men will consent to take the 
treatment and then do more to hinder than help. Yet 
these same men will swear by all that's holy that "they 
followed instructions exactly." It must be under- 
stood that one must comply with the spirit of the in- 
structions and not merely "go through the motions." 
The directions and instructions are not difficult to 
follow. They do not entail any hardships on the 
patient and in nearly every instance he can keep on 
with his usual occupation. A thorough result will 
require a few weeks' time and a little perseverance, but 
there is no quicker way if you want complete and 
permanent relief from drunkenness. This disease 
cannot be cured over night and if you are seeking a 
real cure, mentally and physically, do not be misled 
into believing it can be effected in three or four days' 
time. Follow all directions as closely as is possible 
and do your part thoroughly as you cannot expect 
favorable results in anything if the instructions for 
obtaining them are not carried out. 

General Eliminative Measures 

It is best that the patient be sober when treat- 
ment is begun so that he will be able to follow all 
instructions intelligently. The use of all intoxicants 
should cease immediately, provided this can be done 
without causing the patient too great a degree of dis- 
comfort and suffering. If he feels that he cannot stop 
drinking at once then the amount consumed daily 
should be reduced one-half. Three or four days later 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 171 

the quantity should be again cut in half, so that after 
the fourth day not more than one-quarter of the usual 
amount is being taken. After ten days to two weeks 
there should be no further craving and liquor should 
then be given up completely. Treatment, however, 
should be continued for some time longer. 

At the beginning of the treatment thorough in- 
testinal elimination should be secured. For this pur- 
pose the patient should take a Seidlitz powder half an 
hour before breakfast and also one-half an hour before 
the regular evening meal. A dessert spoonful of 
either Rochelle or Epsom salts can be taken instead of 
the Seidlitz powder if preferred. These salts should 
be taken in this way every day for about six days. 
Then omit the dose before supper and continue for 
another week. The salts can then be discontinued if 
the bowels continue to move freely. Drink a glass or 
two of water before breakfast, hot water is better at 
this time ; also take three to four glassfuls at intervals 
between breakfast and luncheon and the same during 
the afternoon. Plenty of water is a splendid aid to 
elimination. 

During the first ten days of treatment the patient 
should, if possible, take a hot bath every day. Those 
having a bath tub with hot and cold water should take 
the bath as hot as it can be borne and remain in the 
bath for from thirty minutes to an hour. After the 
hot bath take a cool (not cold) sponge bath and dry 
yourself by a brisk rubbing with a coarse towel. 

The daily hot baths should be kept up for ten 
days to two weeks, or longer if patient desires. After 
two weeks a bath twice a week will usually be found 
sufficient. If the patient has a "bath cabinet" he will 
be benefited by taking a sweat bath every night for 
the first two weeks and two to three times a week 



172 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

thereafter during the treatment. Turkish baths and 
radiant light baths, previously described, will be 
found beneficial if taken once or twice a week all 
through treatment. 

As previously stated the sprees of periodical 
drinkers may often be cut short or aborted entirely, if 
a thorough course of baths and elimination be com- 
menced just as soon as the usual feeling of unrest and 
impulse to drink is experienced. 

As to diet, the patient should eat plain, easily di- 
gested food, which should not be highly seasoned. All 
pastry, cakes and other rich articles should be omitted. 
Fruit can be eaten freely. Six to ten glasses of water 
should be drunk each day. Buttermilk will be found 
beneficial, and agreeable to most patients. Almost any 
non-alcoholic drink can be partaken of freely. If the 
stomach feels sore and distressed a little ice cream will 
often touch the spot. 

Exercise freely in the open air, practice deep 
breathing and form the habit of sleeping with the win- 
dows wide open. Patient should obtain all the sleep 
he can and regularity should be observed as much as 
possible in regard to rest, exercise and meals. 

Medication for Eradicating the "Craving for 
Alcohol" 

Three days after the foregoing general eliminative 
measures have been begun, the patient should begin to 
take the official Elixir of Iron, Quinine and Strychnine 
Phosphates, the dose being one teaspoonful in a half 
glass of water, one-half hour before meals, also in the 
middle of the forenoon, in the middle of the after- 
noon and at bed time, making six to seven doses per 
day. When a Seidlitz powder or salts are taken before 
a meal then the tonic should be omitted. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 173 

The tonic should be continued as above for three 
weeks or four if the craving still persists. As soon as 
the craving is relieved then use the tonic only before 
meals and continue for three or four weeks. 

Should the craving for alcohol persist after the 
first ten days, then get from your druggist some very 
small quassia chips and make of them an infusion in 
the following manner: To one ounce of the quassia 
chips add one pint of water and let stand for two 
hours. The result will be a bitter liquid, of which take 
a quarter of a glassful, instead of the usual drink, 
whenever the craving for alcohol is felt. This will be 
found to give relief and it is an excellent tonic as well. 

This infusion can be made much stronger by plac- 
ing the mixture in a covered vessel over a" slow fire 
and allowed to heat, but not boil, for one-half hour 
and then cooled for a couple of hours. Two quarts 
of the infusion can be made at a time as it keeps well 
if covered. Strain off the liquid and the chips may be 
used again but the infusion will be weaker, so the sec- 
ond time use less water and allow it to remain longer. 

In connection with the balance of the treatment 
the foregoing measures will ordinarily serve to remove 
the craving or at least to lessen it to such a degree that 
it can be easily withstood for the short time that it 
will persist. There will be a great many drinkers who 
should have remedies additional to these but they can- 
not be prescribed or even suggested here for reasons 
already given, but such individuals will undoubtedly 
consult with their medical adviser and the proper 
auxiliary remedies can then be determined. 

The Mental Treatment 

In connection with such physical measures as have 
already been outlined, or with such others as may be 



174 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

found advisable to employ, the mental treatment must 
not be omitted or lost sight of. This consists of Sug- 
gestions and Auto-Suggestions used for the purpose 
of changing a drinker's thoughts in regard to his habit 
of drinking, or, in other words, to correct his wrong 
mental attitude or wrong habit of mind, which is one 
of the great causes for drunkenness. The importance 
of faithfully following this part of the directions can- 
not be too strongly emphasized and each patient is 
urged to fully carry out all these instructions earnestly 
and persistently, even though their force and value is 
not immediately seen. 

Unfamiliarity with the "Law of Suggestion" 
should not cause any fear as to your ability to use 
this mighty force. You will have no trouble or 
difficulty if you but learn the few simple general rules 
given herein and then do as instructed. To successfully 
use Suggestion it is not at all necessary that you have 
any great knowledge of psychology or that you under- 
stand minutely all the fundamental principles of the 
law. If you will but follow the instructions you will 
get the results and benefits from Suggestions even 
though you do not understand why. It is just the 
same as your turning on an electric light switch, you 
get the light even though you know nothing of how 
the electricity was made or how it is controlled. 

The first great truth to be realized is that the 
quality of our ideas, thoughts and suggestions deter- 
mines the quality of our actions. The habitual recep- 
tion and entertainment of evil suggestions, thoughts 
and ideas will destroy a fine character and habitual 
good thoughts and ideas will reform and rebuild a bad 
one. Suggestion is two-edged. It will build or de- 
stroy, depending entirely upon the character of the 
suggestions which you permit to enter your conscious- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 175 

ness. Suggestions for good, however, cannot possibly 
harm either body or mind. Such suggestions tend al- 
ways upward, never downward. They are always 
"constructives" and never "destructives." 
The Thoughts Suggestion as a first cause of drinking 
Which Make has already been described but that you 
Men Drink. may better understand how a person's 

thoughts control his action a few further examples 
will be given of the manner in which a drinker "rea- 
sons" before he takes a drink. He ordinarily "talks it 
over" with himself very much in the following way : 

"I believe I need a drink as an eye opener and to 
give me an appetite for breakfast." "I don't feel very 
well this morning and I think a drink will fix me up." 
He takes a drink to begin with and then about nine or 
ten o'clock in the morning he begins to tell himself: 
"It's a long time since I had a drink and I really need 
one before luncheon. I can't get along without it." "I 
guess I'll just run out and get a little something to 
brace me up." At luncheon he again tells himself : "A 
little drink will make me feel better." In the afternoon 
it is the same thing. He keeps continually telling him- 
self that he needs a drink. He permits his thoughts 
to dwell upon drink and these Auto-Suggestions, 
reaching his sub-conscious mind, make him go and get 
a drink, we might say, almost unconsciously. 

At other times he will recall to mind the pleasures 
he has had when drinking with companions and this is 
a powerful suggestion to find his friends and renew his 
former pleasant experience. Again something may 
go wrong at home or in business and he says : "Oh ! 
I'll go take a drink and forget it." The last part of 
the suggestion is good but it's the first part that starts 
the trouble. He also receives many invitations to 
drink with friends, who tell him of the good times in 



176 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

store, and all these are suggestions which, when al- 
lowed to remain in the mind, result in his getting 
drunk. 

To the foregoing suggestions must also be added 
the sub-conscious one caused by the "craving" which 
the regular use of intoxicants is almost certain to pro- 
duce. It is this "craving suggestion" which usually 
starts the mind to entertain thoughts of drinking, and 
the combination of craving and auto-suggestions in 
favor of drink is one that is seldom resisted. 

Overcoming a ^he crav i n g" ls a result of the alcoholic 
Bad Habit poisoning of the body and can be over- 

of Mind. come by the use of proper medicines, while 

the bad habit of mind or body can be overcome by 
putting the "destructive" thoughts out of the mind 
and filling their place with "constructive" ideas. That 
is why the combination of mental and physical treat- 
ment gives such splendid results in the treatment of 
drunkenness, and why you should not neglect the 
mental which is now being outlined. 

One of the great laws of psychology is that two 
suggestions or ideas of opposite character can not be 
accepted and acted upon at the same time. Therefore 
all that is necessary to overcome any suggestion or 
auto-suggestion to drink is at once to give the mind a 
stronger counter suggestion not to drink. If this is 
kept up for a short time, in connection with the medi- 
cines and measures for removing the "craving," it 
will be found that the thoughts and desires for taking 
a drink will become fewer and fewer until they no 
longer come of their own accord and liquor will be 
left alone as a matter of habit just as a drink is now 
taken because of the "drink habit." 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 177 

How to Make ^he conditions most favorable to the 

Auto-Suggestions reception of impressions from auto- 
Most Effective. suggestion is when the body and mind 
are quiet and in a state of relaxation. Just after re- 
tiring at night, when you are settling to sleep, is a 
propitious time for the reception of all forms of sug- 
gestion, as is also just after awakening in the morn- 
ing when all the faculties are being aroused to begin 
a new period of consciousness. Suggestion, however, 
tnay be, and usually is, employed with advantage fre- 
quently during the day and under all sorts of condi- 
tions. 

In preparing your auto-suggestions always make 
them in the form of positive assertions. There should 
be no doubt of any kind felt or expressed. 

Assert to yourself that you already have such 
characteristics as you wish and expect to possess. For 
instance, say to yourself, "I am strong" — but never 
"I am going to be strong" or "I hope to be strong." 
Say "I have courage and will power," not "I expect 
sometime to have courage and will power." 

After deciding upon the suggestions you are going 
to use, then write them out in full so that none of them 
will be forgotten or changed. Each suggestion should 
be repeated several times. The value of frequent repe- 
tition is difficult to overestimate. This is especially 
true where experience in the application of auto-sug- 
gestion is lacking and the subconscious faculty of the 
mind has not been trained sufficiently to make rapid 
response. Frequent repetition of the suggestion grad- 
ually awakens the impulse to action. The impulse must 
precede the actual performance of the action. As ex- 
plained in another chapter a frequently repeated sug- 
gestion grows in strength until it influences the mind 
to conscious action in accordance with the character 



178 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

of the suggestion. Thus your thoughts cause and 
govern your actions. 

Audible self-suggestion, or the practice of talking 
to oneself vigorously and earnestly, is one of the 
greatest aids to the effectiveness of the suggestive 
principle. This practice seems to arouse the sleeping 
forces even more effectively than thinking does alone. 
There is a power in the spoken word, which is lacking 
with the same words repeated mentally. Audible sug- 
gestion makes a more lasting impression, on the same 
principle that words which pass through the eye from 
the printed page make a stronger impression on the 
sub-conscious brain than we get from thinking the 
same words. The spoken word carries with it an un- 
questionable force, especially if uttered earnestly, and 
with conviction. 

To add to the effectiveness of your auto-sugges- 
tions repeat them slowly, thoughtfully. After making 
an auto-suggestion stop a moment. Let its meaning 
and significance be fully grasped. Turn it over in your 
mind. Endeavor to feel it. Repeat the process and 
continue to do so, earnestly, persistently, and results 
will be as inevitable as any other manifestation of the 
law of cause and effect. By means of auto-suggestion 
a man can practically make himself what he will. 
The Auto- ^ s exam pl es for you to follow I will 

Suggestions to formulate a number of auto-suggestions 
Be Employed. for the purpose of increasing Will Power 
and creating an attitude of mind against drinking and 
drunkenness. To these can be added as many others 
as you choose. Each night upon retiring, and each 
morning when you first awaken to begin the day, give 
yourself with all seriousness and earnestness the fol- 
lowing thoughts : 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 179 

I Can and I Will. 

I Have Will Power and Determination. 

I Am Strong and Determined. 

My Will Power is Strong Now. 

I Feel My Strength of Will Power in Every 
Atom of My Body. 

I Do What I Will to Do. 

I Will to no Longer Use Intoxicants. 

I Have no Desire for Drink. 

I Have no Thoughts for Drink. 

I Am Free from Any Craving for Drink. 

I Am in Better Condition Without Drink. 

I Refuse to Make My Family and Friends 
Miserable and Unhappy Through My 
Drinking. 

I Will Not Permit Another to Influence 
Me to Drink. 

I Am Master of Myself. 

Drink no Longer Masters Me. 

Keep up suggestions of this character as long as 
you find that ideas for drink keep coming into your 
thoughts of their own accord, or are suggested to you 
by your companions. After a short time you will find 
the destructive mental habit will entirely disappear 
and in its place you can establish one which will tend 
to benefit you for all the rest of your life. 
How to Giving oneself suggestions against drink 

Control Your W *H at fi rst require a conscious effort of 
Thoughts. mind, because you have been used to 

thoughts of another character and changing our 
mental attitude on any subject is always a little diffi- 
cult at the beginning. We all like to do the things 
which are "easiest" and because it is easier we let our 
thoughts wander and permit all kinds of ideas to enter 
our mind and it is only by an effort of will and per- 
sistence that we can keep our thoughts concentrated. 



180 DRUNKENNESS—WHAT IT IS 

So at the commencement you will probably have 
"drinking thoughts" frequently, but do not allow them 
to remain. Instead of entertaining them, immediately 
make yourself think of something which will be bene- 
ficial and constructive and soon you will find your 
thoughts putting you on the road to mental, physical 
and financial advancement, instead of them leading 
you the opposite way. 

If at any time during the day a suggestion to take 
a drink is received do not welcome it and dwell upon 
it with pleasure, but immediately give yourself an auto- 
suggestion against drink. Let the suggestions that you 
give yourself to this end be firm and emphatic. Do not 
argue with yourself as to whether you should or should 
not drink, but state positively to yourself that you will 
not. You can enumerate to yourself the different rea- 
sons why you will not as each one of these reasons will 
strengthen the power of all the other suggestions. 

When thoughts of drinking persist in coming 
back, as they will at first, then busy yourself with your 
work or with some occupation that will take your 
thoughts entirely away from liquor. Begin to take 
extra care in doing your work, see if you cannot do 
more of it and do it better. Keep your head and hands 
busy at the same time. Become deeply interested in 
something and see how seldom thoughts of drinking 
will obtrude themselves on your attention. 
What to Say ^ y° ur fr* en( k ask you to drink, simply 
to Drinking say, "Boys, I have reached that place 
Friends. where I know that I am going to be far 

better off without even one single drink and so I have 
quit, and as friends of mine I will ask you not to in- 
sist upon my drinking with you." You will find that 
you will not be urged further by those who are your 
true friends and any others you can well afford to 
leave alone. 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 181 

It may sometimes be necessary to make new 
friendships, or to change your mode of recreation but 
neither of these is difficult to do and when you get 
right down to brass tacks and are honest in your judg- 
ment you will find that in the great majority of cases 
you are bettering yourself very much by making the 
change. 

Make a Mental In order that y° u ma y have a defini te 
Picture of idea of just what you wish to accomplish 

Your New Self, and also that you may note the marked 
change which will take place within yourself it will be 
well for you to form a mental image of what you 
would like to have or to be. Make it clear, distinct 
and in detail so that you can see it plainly with the 
"mind's eye." Do not place this "new self" of yours 
in the far distant "sometime" but bring it close to 
you in the ever present "now" 

Then take each day such steps as will bring you 
closer to your ideal self as you have pictured it in 
your mind. The steps at first will be little ones and 
will be taken only one at a time* but they grow rap- 
idly larger in their effect until after only a few weeks' 
time you look back to where you started and view 
with pride and astonishment the progress you have 
made. 

All successes and failures in life are determined by 
the kind and vigor of one's auto-suggestions and by 
the character of the mental picture men make of them- 
selves. Most people make mental images of what 
they would like to be and the things they would like 
to have, but these pictures are more in the nature of 
transient desires, and day dreams with no real attempt 
and effort to make them realities. The greatest ac- 
complishment which has ever been achieved is but a 
dream which has been made to come true by continu- 



182 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

ous right thinking and its positive result, right acting. 
Wishes and longings are realized one after another if 
you but think right and act right. 
The While the power of auto-suggestion is not di- 

Power rectly a result of the faith that an individual 
of Faith, may have in it, its effectiveness is none the less 
greatly influenced by it ; so much so that where the ele- 
ment of faith is lacking its power is crippled, if not 
destroyed entirely. Disbelief or doubt puts into opera- 
tion a series of counter suggestions whose power in- 
variably paralyzes the effectiveness of any auto-sug- 
gestion that has been made. It should not be under- 
stood that blind unreasoning faith is what is required ; 
on the contrary, the faith that has a rational, common- 
sense basis is preferred, for under these conditions the 
effectiveness of auto-suggestions is undoubtedly multi- 
plied. It is only skepticism or ridicule which is 
the outgrowth of ignorance on the subject, or doubt, 
merely because you individually have had no proof, 
that operates against the accomplishment of results. 
If the existence of facts or phenomena has been rea- 
sonably proven by others, it is the height of folly to 
permit individual prejudices based on ignorance to 
stand in the way of your belief or acceptance. Harbor 
no doubts or disbeliefs. Approach your exercises hope- 
fully, trustingly. Seek to prove rather than disprove. 
Let nothing conflict with your faith in the successful 
outcome of your practice. 

General Instructions 

Study well the chapter on the "Causes of Drink- 
ing" and then take such steps as will lead to the re- 
moval of the cause. If you drink to give you addi- 
tional strength to do more work, just bear in mind that 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 183 

alcohol weakens all your powers and faculties and 
renders you unfit to do as much or as good work as you 
could without it. If it is to relieve or cure some ail- 
ment, you must know that alcohol does not cure any 
disease, but makes them all worse. If your drinking 
is because of companionship, then make new friends. 
Just go over in your mind the finish of all those who 
have tried to get the best of John Barleycorn and that 
should be sufficient evidence that you can't beat him 
and that the best you can get is the worst of it. 

Take all so-called reasons and after honest judg- 
ment see if there is any one of them which really justi- 
fies you in persisting in believing in it. Just between 
ourselves, as man to man, when you get right down to 
hard facts, is the cause or reason that you may give for 
drinking anything more or less than an excuse? Has it 
any real foundation and do you think anyone believes 
it? 

Do not take a treatment for a week or two and 
then stop. To do so would not be fair to yourself, 
your family or to the one who prescribed for you. Do 
not expect any method of treatment to cure you if you 
make a determined effort to prevent it. 

Keep away from temptation as much as possible, 
especially during treatment and until such time as you 
are certain of your control of yourself. We are all 
only human and if we keep exposing ourselves to 
temptation and opportunity at the same time, we are 
pretty sure to yield to the temptation. You cannot play 
with fire without sometime getting burned. 

Remember, there may be a week or two of slight 
bodily inconvenience while the system is accustoming 
itself to the change and getting out of the habit of 
expecting alcohol at certain times. The physical treat- 
ment outlined will overcome practically all disagree- 



184 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

able symptoms but there may be just enough to make 
you aware that there is a change taking place. Do not 
take any liquor to make you feel like "your old self" 
because that is just what we want to get rid of and 
leave in its place a new self which will be far better 
physically and mentally than the one discarded. 

If by following the foregoing instructions as to 
eliminative treatment, baths, diet, tonic medication, and 
the use of auto-suggestions for changing your present 
habit of thought regarding drink, you are not in a 
short time completely free from every particle of crav- 
ing, with the taste or smell of liquor disagreeable, and 
having no thoughts or desires for it, then it is sug- 
gested that you consult with a physician skilled in the 
treatment of inebriety and lay your case fully and 
frankly before him. His experience will undoubtedly 
enable him to make such changes in this general 
method of treatment as will fit your particular case 
and make certain of a perfect and speedy cure. By fol- 
lowing this course you will be practically certain to 
free yourself from the domination of drink, your 
health will be much better and your general efficiency 
and earning capacity will be greatly increased. All of 
this is well worth having and all is within your easy 
reach. 



A Method for Handling the Case 

of a Drinker Who Will Not 

Consent to Take Treatment 

In a preceding chapter it has been shown that it 
is with difficulty that a drinker can be made to realize 
the mental and physical damage which he has suffered 
by reason of his drinking and he also dislikes very 
much to admit that his appetite and craving for alco- 
holics has grown to such an extent that it is no longer 
under his control. As a result there are great numbers 
of drinkers badly in need of treatment but who will not 
acknowledge the fact or agree to take it. Some there 
are who even go so far as to declare they wish to re- 
main drunkards the rest of their lives, but fortunately 
they are comparatively few. As a matter of fact every 
drinker at times awakens to the realization that he is 
drinking far more than is good for him and he makes 
a great many spasmodic attempts to cut down the 
amount. He seldom succeeds because he does not fully 
understand the nature of his trouble and therefore can- 
not know the proper steps for him to take to overcome 
his craving and after a failure or two his false pride 
keeps him from acknowledging his need for medical 
help. This same false pride also makes him declare, 
"I can stop whenever I wish to," a declaration which 
in his heart he knows is not true when he makes it. 

When a drinker, whose need for treatment is ap- 
parent to all but himself, declares that he will not take 
it, that he wants to drink, or that he can stop entirely 
whenever he chooses, his family or friends who wish 
him to quit drinking have only two or three courses 

185 



186 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

which they can follow. One is to let him alone and 
trust to luck or some happy circumstance to cause him 
to stop. Another is to follow the usual method of 
pleading with him, scolding him or threatening him 
with all sorts of punishments or dire disasters if he 
continues to drink. Yet another is to first recognize 
the fact that in Inebriety we have to deal with a dis- 
ease of the body and a wrong attitude of mind, then 
to follow a well defined method of physical and mental 
treatment for the purpose of removing the "craving" 
for drink and changing the drinker's thought habits to 
such an extent that he will wish to leave all kinds of 
intoxicants alone, rather than continue to use them. 

I realize full well that there are those who believe 
and assert that it is useless to try any method of treat- 
ment for drunkenness unless the patient is in full ac- 
cord and is using his will power to aid in the cure, but 
clinical experience, which is the only real proof in 
these cases, has shown that radical cures follow care- 
fully planned treatment even though the patient's con- 
sent was not first obtained. 

There is no gainsaying the fact that the co-opera- 
tion of the patient is much to be desired and results 
follow far more quickly with his assistance than with- 
out it, but the lack of his consent is no reason for be- 
lieving that nothing can be done for him along cura- 
tive lines. 

To treat successfully a drinker who does not con- 
sent to take treatment is, of course, more difficult than 
when the patient is willing and anxious to be cured. 
One reason for this is that any medicines which may 
be used either have to be given without detection or 
taken by the patient supposedly for some ailment other 
than drunkenness. Another is that the mental treat- 
ment must be unconsciously received suggestions from 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 187 

the one who is administering the treatment, instead of 
the more powerful auto-suggestions given by the pa- 
tient to himself. Then, instead of having the patient's 
will power as an aid, it is very often opposed to treat- 
ment, especially in the beginning. Again the measure 
of success depends very largely upon how faithfully 
instructions are carried out by the one administering 
the treatment. It takes a little time and perseverance 
to accomplish anything against adverse circumstances 
and consequently in any of these cases half-hearted, 
inconstant efforts cannot be expected to win. 

Notwithstanding there may be some difficulties 
attendant upon carrying out a line of treatment with- 
out the patient's knowledge and assistance, it is far 
better to make all efforts necessary than it is to sit 
idly by bewailing the fact that he cannot be induced to 
undergo the treatment which he needs. You certainly 
will not harm the patient by making a vigorous and 
sustained effort to cure him, and moreover "there is 
every possibility of being successful, so if you cannot 
gain his consent you can at least see what you can ac- 
complish without it. 

It should be understood that no immediate or 
miraculous change is to be expected, though very often 
results come in a surprisingly short time. While the 
measures employed are in themselves curative yet the 
aim should always be to change the patient's attitude 
of mind so that he will take treatment of his own free 
will. Very often you may begin without the patient's 
consent, but as a result of the medication and sugges- 
tion the patient will undergo a complete change of 
mind and become anxious to be cured instead of being 
opposed to it. Just as soon as he manifests a desire 
to be cured and a willingness to take treatment, he can 



188 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

then follow from the beginning the instructions given 
in the preceding chapter. 

As the circumstances surrounding each of these 
cases differ so widely, it will be out of the question to 
give more than a mere outline of the treatment to be 
followed, but if this does not prove successful your 
medical adviser can undoubtedly prescribe such addi- 
tional remedies as will be necessary. 

The Medical Measures 

The general eliminative treatment has already 
Keen given in the preceding chapter, but inasmuch as 
the patient is not aware that he is being treated for 
Inebriety it may not be feasible to get him to conform 
to it in its entirety, but in all cases an effort should be 
made to have him do so. Most drinkers suffer from 
one or more ailments, and for the relief of which they 
often may be induced to employ all the measures de- 
scribed. This would include stopping the use of al- 
coholics, the purgatives, the different baths and the 
diet. Kidney and liver troubles, stomach diseases, 
nervousness, sleeplessness, constipation, rheumatism, 
skin eruptions and a great variety of other disorders 
will be greatly benefited by this course of elimination 
and at the same time you will be getting its benefits 
for Drunkenness. 

Study the chapter on "The Causes of Drinking" 
so that you can suggest to your patient the advisability 
of trying the eliminative treatment for some trouble 
about which he may complain. Should he once begin, 
the benefits he will receive will undoubtedly cause him 
to continue for as long as may be necessary for your 
purpose. 

To assist in the eradication of the craving the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 189 

same medication may be used as described in the 
previous chapter. Here also it may be necessary to 
give these medicines ostensibly for some other ailment. 
While there are several medicines which can be used 
without the knowledge of the patient, yet one should 
be familiar with the conditions of each case before sug- 
gesting them and consequently they cannot well be 
given in a general work of this kind, but should it be 
necessary to employ them your medical adviser will 
probably be able to furnish them and tell you just 
how to give them. 

The Mental Treatment 

In these cases, the patient not being willing to 
take treatment, Auto-Suggestion is out of the question 
and its place must be taken by Suggestions given to 
the patient by some member of his family. Such sug- 
gestions are formulated with the idea and purpose of 
reaching the sub-conscious mind and through it of in- 
ducing a conscious desire to be cured of drinking and 
a resolve to leave liquor entirely alone. 

In the chapter "Which Drinkers Are Curable and 
The General Method of Treatment" mention was made 
of the use of Suggestion to induce a wish to take 
treatment and the psychological basis upon which this 
possibility rests was fully explained, so here it will 
only be necessary to state the way in which Sugges- 
tion may be employed for this purpose. 

The patient should be in a relaxed or passive state, 
as in that condition the mind is more receptive to sug- 
gestion impressions than if it was entirely occupied 
with its own ideas. For this reason the best time to 
use Suggestion for this particular purpose is just after 
the patient has fallen asleep at night and just before 



190 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

his usual time of awakening in the morning. There 
also may be times during the day when they can be 
given. 

In using this method wait until the patient has 
fallen asleep and then in a low, clear, positive voice 
begin to give your suggestions. Do not speak loud 
enough to arouse the patient and stop should he show 
signs of awakening. Start with only two or three sug- 
gestions but repeat each one several times. You can 
gradually add to the number of the suggestions as the 
treatment progresses. The following will serve as 
examples to which you may add others to fit any par- 
ticular condition you may wish to overcome : 

You Wish to Stop Drinking. 

You Will Take Treatment for Your Drink- 
ing. 

You Have no Further Desire for Drink. 

You Do Not Crave Drink. 

You Will Refuse to Drink When Asked. 

You Do Not Think About Drinking. 

You Will Not Make Your Family Unhappy 
Through Your Drinking. 

You Will Not Permit Drink to Ruin You. 

You Will Not Waste Your Money for Drink. 

You Have the Will Power to Stop Drinking. 

You Are Master of Yourself. 

Drink Can no Longer Master You. 

You Are in Better Health Without Drink. 

You Are Done With Liquor Forever. 

You Will Take a Treatment for Drinking 
Because It Will Make Your Family 
Happy. 

You Will Take Treatment Because of the 
Countless Benefits to Yourself. 

In the morning before the patient awakes the 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 191 

same or similar suggestions should again be given. 
The conscious mind is at this time about to again re- 
sume the direction of the body, and is very open to 
receive and carry out the instructions which you have 
given the subconscious mind during the time that it 
was in control. 

You will note that the foregoing examples contain 
the suggestions that the patient will want to be cured 
and will take treatment willingly. This is the attitude 
of mind which is desired because it will practically 
insure his being cured and makes it much easier for 
the one who is administering the treatment. 

Always tell your patient that he can stop drink- 
ing, if he will but make the effort in the right way. If 
he says he wants to stop, but does not want to take 
treatment, you can tell him of the auto-suggestions 
which he can make to himself and give him instruc- 
tions as how to control his thoughts in regard to his 
drinking. Little by little you can introduce the other 
features and gradually, as improvement progresses, his 
ideas will come to coincide with yours and he will be 
willing to carry out the treatment in full. 

Do not take all your friends and neighbors into 
your confidence and tell them what you are doing. 
They undoubtedly would want to help you, but know- 
ing nothing of the treatment for Inebriety their advice 
would probably not only be worthless but it might 
prove injurious. Further than this, a little injudicious 
or thoughtless talking among themselves might undo 
all your efforts by arousing an extreme antagonism in 
the mind of your patient against treatment. 

All suggestions should be such as will be for the 
patient's good when he follows them. The sub-con- 
scious mind will more readily accept and act upon a 
suggestion, which will be of benefit to the body, than 



192 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

it will upon one which will tend to injure it. This ap- 
plies to both the physical and moral natures. All nor- 
mal human beings are far more inclined to do things 
that are right than they are those that are wrong. The 
great big majority of people have far more virtues 
than they have faults. They may have one great big 
failing which stands out so prominently that in gazing 
at that we overlook numberless virtues which he pos- 
sesses. If we had a method by which a moral balance 
could be taken, you would find that in practically 
every instance the good would out-weigh the evil. 

Because of this innate tendency of the sub-con- 
scious mind toward rectitude it is very easily influ- 
enced by suggestions against the use of intoxicants. 
This is shown by the confirmed drinker's spasmodic 
efforts at reform and the good resolutions which he is 
constantly making, both to himself and to others. The 
reason for his failure to keep his good resolutions is 
because he has not learned how to make his auto-sug- 
gestions effective and because he does not make them 
persistent so that they continually gain in strength. 

If you do not understand the workings of the 
"Law of Suggestion" you may not realize the effective- 
ness of these measures, but if you will try them with 
faith, earnestness and a little perseverance I believe 
that you will be fully satisfied with the results which 
will follow. All persons are amenable to suggestions 
but vary in degree of receptivity, consequently one will 
respond and act on the given suggestions much more 
quickly than another. 

The giving of Suggestions against drink need not 
be confined to such times as the patient is asleep, but 
they can be given whenever you are talking with him 
about his drinking. The suggestions used should al- 
ways be "constructive" in character and no doubt 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 193 

should ever be implied as to the patient's ability or in- 
tention of following them. 

The better to make my meaning clear I will illus- 
trate with a few examples of "destructive" form of 
suggestion and also examples of the "constructive" 
form. The former, by the way, is by far the more 
commonly used to the great detriment of any good in- 
tent that the patient may have or any effort that he 
might otherwise make toward stopping. 

It is very usual for a drinker, when he is about 
to leave the house, to be admonished something after 
this fashion: "Well, I suppose you will come home 
tonight drunk as usual." "I presume you are off to 
find your drinking friends and spend your time and 
money in some dirty saloon." "You haven't any will 
power and you just let those men make you drink." 
"You can't stop drinking if you tried to, and you will 
just drink yourself into your grave and that will be 
the end of it." "Now, John, please don't drink today 
like you usually do." "You promise you won't drink 
tonight, but I know you will," etc. 

The intention is of course to have patient leave 
drink alone, but usually the result is negative or ex- 
actly opposite to the one desired. The reason for this 
lies in the form in which the suggestions are given. 
The suggestions all convey the unspoken impression 
that you expect and believe that he will do just what 
you think you are asking him not to do. The element 
of doubt runs all through them. The drinker knows 
that you lack faith in him and do not expect much 
from him and consequently he does not disappoint you. 
Among the large employers of men it has been found 
by many tests that if you let a man know that you 
have absolute faith in his ability to do a thing and do 
it well, he will make good your confidence in him. On 



194 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

the other hand let him know that you expect but little 
ability or skill from him and you will get just what was 
expected. This same thing holds true even in dealing 
with men who drink and it accounts for the failure of 
many well meant cautions, admonitions and pleas ad- 
dressed to them. 

In the "constructive" form of Suggestion the 
drinker is made to feel that you have faith in him and 
that you expect that he is going to return sober, not 
because he has been scolded or frightened, but because 
he has willed to do so of his own accord. The follow- 
ing examples all convey that impression : "I know that 
you will not touch a single drop today, because you can 
say no and stick to it." "You are the strong willed 
one of all your friends. They cannot make you drink 
just because they ask you, but you show them that 
your will is stronger than theirs by not permitting 
them to influence you to take even one single drop." 
"It is just grand to think that you are not going to 
touch a drop and it makes me feel proud that you have 
such a strong will power and have so much more 
strength of character than most men." "I just am 
sure that you can do better work than any man in your 
line and that none of them have the same strength of 
will to overcome every temptation to drink like you 
do." 

Suggestions like these are bound to create a desire 
to live up to the standard created for him. No drinker 
can fail to put forth an effort to keep away from drink 
when thoughts of this character are constantly being 
implanted. He won't come up to expectations at first, 
but persist and he is sure to respond or else for the 
first time in the world's history the law of cause and 
effect will fail to work. 



General Remarks on the Treatment 
of Drunkenness 

To correct any misunderstanding or misconcep- 
tion as to what can or cannot be done in the way of 
both preventing and curing Drunkenness, it seems ad- 
visable to here answer briefly such questions as are 
usually asked by a prospective patient or his friends. 
In this way likely sources of error may be found and a 
wrong impression corrected. At the same time per- 
haps there can be more clearly brought out the possi- 
bilities and limitations of successful treatment. 

What Constitutes When a drinker loses the "craving" 
a "Cure" of f° r drink, ceases the use of intoxi- 

Drunkenness? cants, and his mental attitude is 

against their further employment, he has been cured of 
drinking and drunkenness. This outcome may have 
been effected by medicines or any other means, but the 
final result may justly be said to be a "cure." 

When a drinker has been fully cured of Inebriety 
it does not always follow that all the consequences of 
his previous indulgence are cured at the same time. If 
there has been serious injury done to either the heart, 
arteries, stomach, liver, or kidneys, its effects may to 
a variable extent remain even after he ceases to drink. 
Any such lesions or pathological conditions as persist 
should be treated by themselves, after the general cause 
— Drunkenness — has been overcome. Treatment of 
complications rarely should be in connection with the 
treatment for Inebriety, and in a large percentage of 
cases it will be found that disorders of function and 
even organic diseases will disappear without further 
medication when the exciting alcoholic cause is no 
longer present and the body is given a chance to re- 
cuperate from its poisonous effects. 

195 



196 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Is Treatment ^°> ** * s notj ^ut Q u ^ e the contrary. 
for Drunkenness There seems to be a rather widespread 
Injurious? idea among drinkers that there is some 

danger to health in undergoing any treatment for 
Drunkenness. This false belief has undoubtedly kept 
many from seeking relief until it was too late to do 
but little for them. The damage to health comes from 
alcohol and not from treatment. 

The notion is also quite prevalent that the sexual 
power is weakened or destroyed as a result of 
"strong" medicines being given to destroy the liquor 
appetite. This is another absurd error which has no 
foundation in fact. Here also the blame rests upon 
alcohol and not upon the remedy. It is common 
knowledge that intoxication enhances desire but de- 
creases ability and confirmed Drunkenness leads to an 
almost complete loss of sexual capacity which is re- 
stored when the use of liquor is stopped. The medi- 
cines used in treating Drunkenness are also commonly 
given as aphrodisiacs. As to just what is meant by 
"strong" medicines I have been unable to obtain from 
patients a satisfactory explanation, but many have a 
rather fixed idea that it must be something very "pow- 
erful" in order to stop the craving. 

Should you have been under the impression that 
any injury to health would be incurred by reason of 
the administration of a treatment for Drunkenness, 
disabuse your mind of the idea at once as no harm 
will follow the use of any accepted treatment for Ine- 
briety which has been selected by a competent physi- 
cian and which is given according to his instructions. 
How Long Does To this question only a general reply 
it Take to can be given as so much depends upon 

Effect a Cure? the patient, his habits of thought and 
action, his surroundings, the intensity of his desire to 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 197 

be cured, the character of his drinking, and the circum- 
stances under which the treatment is given. Each 
patient is a law unto himself and the time required to 
cure him varies with each individual. 

Under favorable conditions, where the patient has 
a real wish to be cured, and instructions are followed 
reasonably close, the intense craving can usually be 
overcome in from one to three weeks. After this sup- 
portive and tonic treatment should be given for a 
further period of four weeks and in some instances 
longer. During this time mental treatment should be 
actively employed in order that a "habit of mind" 
against the further use of intoxicants may be formed 
and firmly fixed. 

With confirmed alcoholics, who have become prac- 
tically physical and mental degenerates, the time re- 
quired for their reformation, if accomplished at all, 
will be from six months to two years. They require as 
before explained, special institutional treatment and if 
recovery does not take place within two years they are 
to all intents and purposes incurable. 

Periodical drinkers whose sprees only occur at 
long intervals of say from six months to a year cannot 
be said to be cured until one or two years have elapsed 
from the time of taking treatment. Active medicinal 
measures must be confined either to preventive or abor- 
tive treatment at about the time the outbreak is ex- 
pected or to cutting it short after it occurs. Treat- 
ment given at such times often results in a complete 
cure, though some patients will require one or more 
repetitions at the usual time of their attacks before 
permanent relief is obtained. 

The common, but ill advised, desire for quick re- 
sults is to be deplored as it has resulted in the rather 
widespread establishment of institutions which profess 



198 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

to completely cure all cases of Inebriety in the space 
of a few days, instead of furnishing treatment for such 
time as each patient may require. You can thoroughly 
sober a drunken person in three days, and by the use 
of apomorphine hypodermically you can make him say 
that he no longer has any craving for drink, but the 
number who are really cured in this time is compara- 
tively few. Some there are who after taking a "hurry 
up" treatment of this character will never drink again, 
but on the majority it has no more permanent effect 
than has the usual sobering up methods. 

A person need only be guided by his ordinary in- 
telligence to know that claims of permanent cures 
made in jig time are founded upon something besides 
facts. It is true that men have been cured of Drunken- 
ness in one day, but these are the rare exceptions and 
not the rule. Most people will put off taking treatment 
from month to month and when they finally do deter- 
mine to go ahead they seek quick results rather than 
thoroughness. The result is of course a disappoint- 
ment and they decry and condemn all methods because 
the outcome of their ill advised desire for a speedy 
cure was a failure. 
Has the Age of the Generall y speaking the two ex- 
Patient Any Bearing tremes of youth and old age offer 
on the Results greater obstacles to successful 

of Treatment? treatment than do the ages between. 

Youth is almost universally cock-sure of itself and 
must have, it seems, a certain amount of experience 
before it hearkens to the dictates of reason or the voice 
of experience. Therefore it is a rather difficult mat- 
ter to convince a boy that drink can or will harm him 
and he will not easily give up a pleasure or a practice 
which he thinks stamps him as being full grown. In 
the case of the old man, the disease being continuous 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 199 

for many years, ordinarily has made more progress 
and greater physical and mental destruction has taken 
place. The recuperative powers of the old are on the 
wane, and his various organs are not so responsive to 
either mental or physical stimuli. Moreover his mind 
is not so easily persuaded to change a habit of thought 
which has become automatic or subconscious through 
long years of action in accordance with that thought. 

Do not judge from this, however, that a drinker in 
his youth, or one of advanced years, is not curable. 
They are, both of them, but perhaps not quite so read- 
ily as those of an age between. Were you to ask the 
question, "Is a young boy of eighteen curable?" I 
would answer, Yes ! I would give the same answer as 
to one of twenty-five, thirty or one of sixty to seventy. 
But it has been my experience, and that of others, that 
other things being equal, the man of from twenty-five 
to forty-five will respond more quickly than either of 
the two extremes. 
Are All Seldom or never does the "craving" for 

Cures drink recur spontaneously, but the causes 

Permanent? which first started a man to drinking will 
result in his again taking to drink should he permit 
them to influence him. Through treatment liquor can 
be made distasteful, the smell repulsive and the very 
thought of drinking it abhorrent, but if a man persists 
he can cultivate a tolerance and an appetite for it in 
just the same manner as at first. There is no drug 
which will make it impossible for a man to swallow a 
drink of liquor should he determine to do so. Medi- 
cines cannot cork his throat. 

While it is true that it is possible for a patient to 
return to drink, yet statistics show that only a very 
small percentage ever do so. Such relapses as do take 
place are usually among those mentioned as being dif- 



200 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

ficult and unsatisfactory to treat, and where because of 
the conditions in which the patient lives after taking 
treatment, permanency of results is hardly to be ex- 
pected. 

In the foregoing we speak only of the efficacy of 
medicines in determining the endurance of the cure, 
but we must not lose sight of Suggestion which is one 
of our strongest means for insuring permanency. 
Through medicine and suggestion cures can be made 
permanent. The patient upon completion of treatment 
has no desire and no necessity for drink and whether 
he ever reverts to its use again will depend entirely 
upon his "thoughts" regarding it. Through Sugges- 
tion and Auto-Suggestion his thoughts can be guided 
into and kept in a channel leading away from drink 
and in a very short time his sub-consciousness will 
acquire the habit of immediately checking any thought 
or desire toward drink and thus make the cure a last- 
ing one. 

How Can a Person ° ften have l been asked for . some 
Be Prevented form of drug treatment to be given as 

from Drinking? a preventive of Drunkenness. Mothers 
will say to me : "Doctor, can you give me a medicine 
which will prevent my boy from ever taking a drink? 
He has never yet tasted liquor and I want you to give 
me something to keep him from ever doing so." This 
would be indeed a consummation devoutly to be 
wished, but it cannot be brought about by medicines. 
We cannot, as it were, "vaccinate" a person against 
drink and have it "take." Suggestion, which includes 
all forms of moral suasion and the right influences and 
surroundings, together with the individual's own com- 
mon sense, reason and judgment, are the only preven- 
tives that are known. 

Keeping a boy or young man from coming into 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 201 

contact with drinking companions is an almost impos- 
sible thing, and warning him against them usually has 
the effect of making him seek their company. Moraliz- 
ing and scolding are of but little worth as preventives, 
they have been tried and found wanting too often to 
have dependence placed upon them. Very often an ap- 
peal to a boy's pride or ambition will succeed in mak- 
ing him refuse to drink, where arguments on the 
morality of his course would not be at all heeded. 
Nearly all young men have ambitions along some par- 
ticular line and anything which will aid in the attain- 
ment of their desires appeals to them most strongly. 
Therefore endeavor to learn to what he aspires at that 
particular time and frame your arguments and sug- 
gestions accordingly. 

Should he wish to excel in athletics, he may refrain 
from touching liquor when he knows that, without ex- 
ception, alcohol has overcome every athlete who ever 
used it. If he takes pride in the skill with which he 
does his work, he can be shown that liquor destroys his 
dexterity and limits his capacity, making him an in- 
ferior instead of a superior. Should he wish to be- 
come a salesman or business man, he can be shown 
that among men who really do things it is not thought 
to be at all smart or manly to drink and that the ones 
who get ahead are the ones who leave drink alone. 

Nearly every boy is acquainted with some man in 
whose word and judgment he has the greatest confi- 
dence and a little friendly advice against drinking from 
such an one will be of great benefit to the boy. This 
will have all the more weight if the man is or has been 
a drinker. In practically every instance a drinker of 
middle age will advise a young boy never to touch a 
drop and from personal experience will give him con- 
vincing reasons for letting it severely alone. Preven- 



202 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

tion of the preliminary experiences which lead to 
drinking can best be obtained with the average boy by 
putting the drink question before him and discussing 
it from a business standpoint. You will find that you 
can make a much stronger appeal to his reason and 
judgment in this way than from almost any other 
viewpoint. 

In addition a series of suggestions for use during 
both sleeping and waking hours can be formulated to 
suit each particular case. Just what form the sug- 
gestions should take must be determined by the cir- 
cumstances and by the characteristics of the individ- 
ual to whom they are to be given. One skilled in the 
employment of suggestion can, when given the neces- 
sary particulars, prescribe the exact suggestions to be 
used and the time and method of giving them. 

Forbidding the sale of all intoxicants and rigidly 
enforcing the prohibition laws will result in prac- 
tically preventing the acquisition of the habit of drink- 
ing. By practical prevention I do not mean that the 
sale of liquor will be entirely stopped, but it will have 
to be obtained in such devious ways that the young 
man without the "craving" will not go to the trouble 
necessary to get a drink and consequently will let it 
alone. 

There are thousands of drinkers who go into a 
saloon or cafe because of bright lights, attractive sur- 
roundings, and congenial companions, who would 
never sneak into an alley or through basements into 
a "blind pig" for the sake of a drink. They would 
take it if it were handy and suggested to them, but 
they would not go to any trouble to get it. The con- 
firmed alcoholic would get his drink by hook or crook 
even in a prohibition community, but there would be a 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 203 

very great shortage in the new crop of beginners and 
in the voluntary drinkers. 

Nature kills off the confirmed drinkers pretty 
fast and if their place was not taken by the young gen- 
eration the saloons would quickly close for want of 
patronage. This result would not be brought about in 
a few months, but five years of actual enforcement of 
prohibitive laws would demonstrate that, for at least 
the young man, prohibition does prohibit. 
Must the That depends entirely upon the patient 

Patient Go to and his surroundings. Many physicians 
a Sanitarium? when asked this question will state that 
each and every patient, irregardless of his physical and 
mental condition, must go to a sanitarium for treat- 
ment and that it is impossible to effect a cure should 
the patient remain at home and pursue his daily occu- 
pation. Such unqualified statements are usually made 
because the physician has not fully informed himself 
regarding the true inwardness of Inebriety and its 
treatment and does not differentiate between drinkers. 
He perhaps is not in a position to look after the case 
personally and feels that if he advises institutional 
treatment that he has done the best thing possible. 

There are cases where treatment in some institu- 
tion or sanitarium is the only method which can be ex- 
pected to effect results, but in actual practice most 
drinkers can be successfully treated at home. Were 
this not true only a very small percentage of drinkers 
could ever hope to be cured, because only a compara- 
tively small number are in a position to leave their 
families and occupations and go to a sanitarium for 
three to eight weeks. 

Most institutions making a specialty of treating 
Inebriety are conducted as private enterprises and but 
few drinkers feel that they can afford the necessary 



204 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

expense for fees, board and lodging, especially when 
they earn nothing while there. True, a man will spend 
in six months more for drink than it would cost to 
cure him, but seldom can you make him or his friends 
see that side of it. He says : 'The treatment costs too 
much, I can't afford it," and goes on drinking. I agree 
that he should not consider the matter in that light, 
but nevertheless he does, and because of the cost 
would not even think of going away for treatment. 

Again great numbers of men consider that taking 
a treatment for Inebriety at a sanitarium attaches a 
stigma which marks them for life. They dread being 
known as a "graduate" of this or that institution and 
they do not want to be classed with many such whom 
they know but with whom they would not associate in 
any manner. This may be a very foolish point of 
view for them to take, but we have to deal with facts 
and conditions, not theories. 

There is a very large and growing class of drink- 
ers, who, when they find that their appetite for liquor 
is getting beyond their easy control, that they begin to 
feel the need and craving for intoxicants, that their 
sprees come oftener and last longer and they begin to 
notice that in various ways drinking is proving harm- 
ful to both their health and their business, determine 
to stop or at least moderate its use. In order to ac- 
complish this they first try "swearing off," then per-* 
haps some of the diet cures, or they may take a series 
of baths to boil out. Finding that the appetite per- 
sists and their physical condition grows worse they go 
to their family physician for "something to build up 
their nerves." 

Usually they are given some of the bitter tonics, 
perhaps a laxative and are advised to let liquor alone. 
Finding that they have received but little benefit as far 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 205 

as the craving for liquor is concerned, the larger num- 
ber decide in their own minds that nothing can be done 
for them or they are too strongly prejudiced to take in- 
stitutional treatment and they cease entirely their ef- 
fort to be cured and ordinarily start drinking harder 
than ever with the usual disastrous results. With the 
smaller number circumstances may be such that they 
can go to a sanitarium where they have every prospect 
of being cured — not because of the fact that they went 
to a sanitarium but because the proper mental and 
physical treatment was selected and administered. 

The proper treatment of this class of patients does 
not require their presence at a sanitarium or the con- 
stant attendance of a physician. It does require, how- 
ever, that the medicines used and suggestive treatment 
employed shall be selected and their use directed by a 
physician who understands thoroughly the treatment 
of Inebriety and how to obtain active results from 
suggestion. The patient himself or some member of 
his family can almost always be trusted to see that 
instructions are followed. The objection may be 
raised that you cannot trust a drinker to carry out di- 
rections. This is true with some classes, but rarely 
so with the type of men we are now speaking of. They 
want to be cured and will follow instructions and do 
so gladly when they at once begin to notice results. 

With these patients you will find that just as good 
results, sometimes even better can be obtained outside 
a sanitarium. They carry on their usual occupations 
and the cure is effected in the same surroundings and 
under the same circumstances in which they would live 
after coming from a sanitarium. This makes for the 
permanency of the cure, besides it enables far more 
patients to obtain the benefits of correct treatment and 
at a much less cost. 



206 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

Another large class comprises those who need 
treatment but who absolutely refuse to take it; who 
will not go to a sanitarium nor take treatment volun- 
tarily. Lacking authority to compel a drinker of this 
class to take treatment whether he will or no, a sani- 
tarium is out of the question and the man who pins 
his faith entirely on drugs and purely medicinal 
measures will immediately say that nothing can be 
done and that he must be left to go his own gait. It 
has already been pointed out that through suggestion 
cures are being effected in this very class of cases, 
therefore why not use it whenever the opportunity of- 
fers. Get the facts peculiar to the case and work out a 
series of suggestions to fit. The wife or mother can 
give them and even if it takes a little time and per- 
severance it is much better than saying: "If that is 
the case nothing can be done." What matter the 
methods used as long as they get results ? 

For chronic, confirmed inebriates who virtually 
have lost all power to will, whose one constant fixed 
idea is to obtain enough liquor to satisfy their con- 
stant craving for it, sanitarium treatment and a long 
period of detention is required. Home treatment of 
any kind is just that much effort wasted. This largely 
is true also of dipsomaniacs but home treatment can 
be first tried and in many cases will be found success- 
ful. Degenerates, epileptics, and other mental defec- 
tives and those of this class can only be treated in sani- 
tariums, but not much can be done for them even then. 
Each patient must be considered individually and 
whether home or sanitarium treatment is indicated 
must be decided by such facts and circumstances as 
pertain to him alone. 



How to Obtain Practical Benefits 
From What You Have Learned 

As stated in the beginning, this book is intended 
to give such knowledge and information to a drinker, 
his family, or friends as will enable him or them to 
understand how the disease of Drunkenness should be 
thoroughly treated in order to effect the maximum 
curative results in the shortest time and at the mini- 
mum expense. To this end the poisonous effects of 
alcohol have been explained; a classification made of 
the various classes of drinkers; the causes of drink- 
ing pointed out and the different methods of treatment 
have been given. In this closing chapter it but re- 
mains to show the only way in which practical benefit 
can result from your study of these facts. 

Practical benefits will only be obtained when your 
study of Inebriety influences you to take steps result- 
ing in your own cure, or causes you to take an active 
interest in some drinker needing treatment. You are 
more or less interested in curing Drunkenness, or you 
would not have read thus far, and you have also 
thought of several whom you would like to see cured. 
But have you determined that your interest shall take 
the form of a real endeavor to cure one or more per- 
sons given to drink? 

You cannot expect a cure of Inebriety to result 
from a mere reading of this book. To effect a cure you 
must put into action the knowledge which you herein 
gain. It will do you but little good to know that Ine- 
briety can be cured, or to know the means whereby this 
can be brought about, unless you make practical use of 

207 



208 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

your knowledge. Therefore, should you wish to be 
cured or to see a friend or relative cured let me advise 
prompt and efficient action on your part. Do not post- 
pone the beginning of treatment one day longer than 
you can possibly avoid and when you do start, deter- 
mine that your part of the work shall be well and thor- 
oughly done. With this attitude of mind you can con- 
fidently expect the best of results in practically all 
cases which have not been described as virtually in- 
curable. 
A Word to K you are a drinking man suppose you 
the Man sit down and have a little heart to heart 

Who Drinks, talk with yourself, just to learn whether 
what you get through drink is worth the price you 
pay for it. Just go over in your mind what you get 
and what you give. Bear in mind that the five, ten 
or fifteen cents for each drink is the smallest part 
of the price. Take all things about drinking into 
consideration, be honest and fair in your judgment, 
look at the whole matter as a business proposi- 
tion and decide whether or not your use of liquor is 
an advantage or a detriment to you and your family. 
While you are about this little self analysis do this 
also : The next time you encounter an intoxicated man 
take a good long look at him and then picture yourself 
in his place. Do you want to know what people think 
of you and how they act towards you when you have 
been drinking? Then watch closely the expression on 
their faces and their actions when they are forced to 
come into contact with a drunken person. A little real 
thought and a little real observation would make most 
drinking men view their drinking in a far less self- 
satisfied way. If John sober were able to see John 
drunk he would never want to touch another drop. 
Should you decide that you would be better off 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 209 

without drink then stop using it, just the same as 
you would stop using any other poison for your body 
or following a ruinous policy in your business. Stop 
for a month or two and if you find there is no craving 
or desire for drink, that your nerves are steady and 
that you feel normal in every way, then you have no 
need to take treatment; you can remain temperate 
without discomfort of body and with but little or no 
effort of will. 

But should you find when you stop drinking for 
two or three days that you begin to be restless, or that 
your nerves are "raw and jumpy," that there is an in- 
describable feeling that something is lacking, or an ap- 
parent stomach craving that is not appeased by food 
or water, that you cannot concentrate on your work, 
that you are unsteady and all unstrung, that the 
thought of "just one little drink as a bracer" keeps 
coming back again and again, then make up your mind 
that you are in need of thorough treatment and deter- 
mine to take it at once. 

If you can be depended upon to follow directions 
and to carry out instructions with reasonable accuracy 
and attention it will in all likelihood not be necessary 
for you to go to a sanitarium or to neglect your busi- 
ness. The treatment need not be at all disagreeable, 
nor will it prove harmful or dangerous. It will be 
worth far more than whatever trouble and expense 
may be incurred. It can't hurt you and will do you a 
world of good. No disgrace is attached to taking 
treatment and being cured, the disgrace lies in not do- 
ing so. 

Not knowing all the particular circumstances of 
your case it would be out of the question to here pre- 
scribe the exact medication and treatment you should 
have, but this can be done by a physician who thor- 



210 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

oughly understands Inebriety, from both the mental 
and physical standpoints. The medication used may 
be very similar in a number of cases, but requires 
variation to perfectly fit each case, and just what that 
variation must be can only be determined by the symp- 
toms and circumstances presented by each individual. 
So too, with the suggestions and auto-suggestions 
which are to be employed, a general idea is here given, 
but they should be individualized for the very best 
results. 

Therefore consult the physician whose ability and 
experience in this special field entitles him to your con- 
fidence, and then be guided by him as to which medi- 
cines should be employed and as to what form the 
mental treatment shall take. It should only be a few 
days before improvement is felt and a complete cure is 
usually only a matter of a comparatively very short 
time. 

There is no "easier way," no miraculous drugs 
nor wonderful herbs brought home by some mission- 
ary from the cannibal islands, so don't expect or look 
for them. Use the same common sense you employ in 
your business and you will not be disappointed in the 
results you will obtain. 
A Word to W you are the wife, mother, sister 

the Drinker's or friend of one who drinks, and 

Family or Friends, you wish to get practical results 
from your study of this book, then use your influence 
to the utmost to induce him to undergo a thorough 
course of treatment. Have him begin willingly if pos- 
sible, but failing to gain his consent you can com- 
mence to treat him for the purpose of creating an in- 
tense desire to be cured as explained a few pages back. 
It does but little or no good to scold, especially 
if scoldings are so common that he has grown cal- 



AND HOW TO CURE IT 211 

loused and pays no attention to them. There are of 
course some exceptions, as where the wife says but 
little about his drinking, but as affairs grow steadily 
worse forbearance ceases to be a virtue and she tells 
him just what she thinks of his conduct and may even 
go so far as to threaten divorce. Coming unexpectedly 
this very often has the effect of making him sober up 
for a time, and it would very likely make him agree 
to take treatment if it were urged at that time. 

A plan for making a drinker realize that he is 
really an inebriate and in need of medical attention is 
to take snap-shot photographs of him when he is drunk 
and then send them to him by mail so that he will 
receive them when sober. Do not comment on them 
but let the pictures tell their own story. The worse 
he appears in the photograph the better will be its 
mental effect. This has frequently resulted in making 
a drunkard so thoroughly disgusted with his appear- 
ance and actions when drunk that he would at once 
seek to be cured. 

There are countless methods which may be em- 
ployed to make a drinker resolve to quit and to induce 
him to take the necessary treatment, and a little study 
of each case will enable anyone to evolve a plan for 
the particular case under consideration. The one great 
thing, however, that is asbolutely necessary to the 
success of any plan is perseverance, and that is what 
most attempts lack. 

Thousands there are who declare, "I do so wish 
that John would stop drinking/' "I would be the 
happiest woman on earth if Henry didn't get drunk," 
"I would give anything I have if George would just 
stop drinking." But when you judge by their actions 
you are forced to believe that there is nothing to these 
assertions but "talk" and they do not really mean a 



NOV 24 1913 

212 DRUNKENNESS— WHAT IT IS 

bit of it. What they do mean is that if some kind 
fairy would make John, George or Henry stop drink- 
ing by waving a magic wand they would say, "Much 
obliged and thank you/' but they don't want to go to 
any trouble or expense to bring about a cure through 
their own efforts and that is why their wishes seldom 
come true. 

If those who read this book had any idea that a 
cure for drunkenness would be effected without some 
attention and effort on the part of all concerned I trust 
that I have effectually disabused their mind of any 
such notion. It does take some effort and a little time, 
not much, it is true, in most cases, but the more stub- 
born ones may require a fair share of both patience 
and perseverance. The results, however, are such as 
to make any effort and any expense well worth while 
to anyone who has to contend with drink in any way 
and who wishes to be free from its influence. 

This is as much "preaching" as I am going to 
do in urging treatment when needed and I will paint 
no verbal pictures of dire disasters to follow con- 
tinued drinking. This book is intended to appeal to 
men and women of brains and common sense and who 
need no "revival exhortations" to induce them to seek 
help and relief, as they should have the courage and 
ability to act on their own judgment and to do that 
which they know should be done. 



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